Amazon Stories
by Allaine
Summary: Cursed by Circe’s magic to wander alternate realities, Wonder Woman works to change the fate of others, even as she seems helpless to change her own.  Will she ever hold her Audrey in her arms again?
1. Prologue

Title: Amazon Stories (Prologue/??)

Author: Allaine

Summary: Cursed by Circe's magic to wander alternate realities, Wonder Woman works to change the fate of others, even as she seems helpless to change her own. Will she ever hold her Audrey in her arms again?

Disclaimers: This story takes place an indeterminate time after _Always a Bridesmaid, Never a Bride_, so you should probably read that first. Familiarity with _Dragons, Demons, and Other Wonders of the Heart_, however, is NOT required. While this story contains action, drama, and profanity, it's suitable for younger readers.

Dedication: This story was originally intended as a Christmas gift to Mooncat, who has been a faithful fan of Diana/Audrey since the first chapter. Thanks go to Princess Alexandria, for her feedback and webpage design.

* * *

Prologue 

"I'm truly sorry, Diana," Audrey said unhappily. "But this silly diplomatic function was pushed back by a day, and my father insists I remain in Kasnia until then."

Wonder Woman sighed. "It can't be helped," she said to the monitor on which Audrey's visage was shown. "You're the princess and sole heir. You have your responsibilities."

"But you had plans for us," Audrey murmured. "And I've gone and ruined them all."

"How many times have my own responsibilities interfered in our relationship?" Diana asked. "Really, we're no different from any other couple where both partners lead busy lives."

"Yes, except where most such couples are physicians or lawyers or some such things," Audrey replied, "we happen to be a superhero and a future world leader. Yes, no different than they, I see it now."

Diana chuckled quietly. "We are a bit more complicated than most, I guess."

"That's the problem with a complicated relationship. Too many complications I could do without." Audrey looked down. "If someone offered me the opportunity to live a normal life - not counting my love for a member of the Justice League, that is - I think I might take it."

"And deprive Kasnia of your sense? I hope not," Diana said.

"What about you?" Audrey asked. "Would you consider giving up your powers if it meant we could be together like other people?"

"It's never going to happen," Diana replied. "Which is good, because I wouldn't want to live with the consequences of such a decision."

"That's not exactly an answer, Diana."

She frowned. "This world needs my help . . . but I've been known to have moments of weakness, not that I generally admit that, and if someone caught me during one of those times - I suppose I'd say yes."

Audrey smiled a little. "But that's never going to happen, as you say. Thank you for wishing it, at least."

"Of course," Diana said.

"So, another day?"

Diana nodded. "I look forward to my continued corruption."

Audrey grinned at what had become an old joke between them. "You must have been quite pure before we met, if you're not thoroughly degraded by now!"

"I was a maiden on an island populated only by women, you know."

"I don't think that says much," Audrey replied. "Women can corrupt one another quite well without men. I should think you and I are a perfect example."

Diana smiled. "Love you."

"I love you too," Audrey said, her cheeks turning pink at the unexpected words. But her eyes were just beginning to grow sad again as she moved her arm, when the connection was suddenly severed from her end.

Diana dropped her head into her hands. "Audrey," she sighed. "If you only knew what I'd give up to have you every night." But she knew she couldn't allow her desire to cloud her sense of duty. The needs of the world outweighed her own.

Speaking of which . . . she put a finger to her temple. "Yes, J'onn," she said, responding to a telepathic summons.

"Diana," he said, his voice ringing in her mind, "Circe has been sighted in Spain. Apparently she's staging her own running of the bulls, only - "

"Don't tell me, let me guess," she groaned. "The bulls were men until she transformed them with her magic."

"You are correct."

"I'll be right there," Diana muttered. A date with Circe, a personal enemy as well as an enemy of the entire League. The gods must have shown pity on her, in giving her this golden opportunity to take her mind off yet another spoiled day with Audrey by ramming Circe's teeth down her throat. "She can see what it's like to be trampled - by me."

* * *

"Does it ever bother you, Princess," Circe taunted her from below, "knowing that tomorrow morning, the pain these men feel will have been caused by you?" 

"Since I wouldn't have to do this if it wasn't for your black sorcery, Circe," Diana fired back as she looped her lariat around the head of a bull that was charging right for a restaurant front, swinging it around and redirecting its momentum so that it plowed into the bulls charging behind it, "I sleep easier at night knowing I can place the blame on you."

"You seem upset, Amazon," Circe sneered. "Do you have a beef with me?"

Diana grimaced. "Your puns are almost as bad as your singing, Circe."

Circe glared hatefully at Wonder Woman. Pointing her finger, she fired a red blast at Diana, who dodged easily. "I'm a bigger star than you!"

"Please," Diana said as she swooped closer, knowing that the quickest way to stop these bulls without causing them all serious physical damage was to stop Circe, "you use your magic to turn men into drooling animals because you can't do it with your looks."

An outraged Circe snarled as she drew something from a pouch at her waist. "Your catty remarks will make this only sweeter!" Reaching back, she hurled the object at Diana.

Diana raised her bracelets defensively, but the item stopped halfway between them and blossomed into a swirling vortex that hung in midair. She could feel sucking winds that seemed to grab onto her, as if they were alive, and begin pulling. "Great Hera!" Diana gasped, trying to pull free.

"You should pray to Hades, Wonder Woman," Circe laughed. "Because thanks to my newest acquisition, when you disappear into the portal, you'll be gone, trapped forever!"

Her attempts to fly away from the vortex grew increasingly frantic, but the pull was even stronger than her. Her toes tingled as she felt them pass through the dark space. "No!"

"Oh, yes," Circe hissed.

"Audrey," Diana thought desperately as she was pulled through up to her neck.

Then everything was dark.

To be continued . . .


	2. Bettering a World, Chapter One

Title: Amazon Stories - Bettering a World, Chapter One

Author: Allaine

Summary: Cursed by Circe's magic to wander alternate realities, Wonder Woman works to change the fate of others, even as she seems helpless to change her own. Will she ever hold her Audrey in her arms again?

Disclaimers: This story takes place an indeterminate time after _Always a Bridesmaid, Never a Bride_, so you should probably read that first. Familiarity with _Dragons, Demons, and Other Wonders of the Heart_, however, is NOT required. While this story contains action, drama, and profanity, it's suitable for younger readers. The characters are owned by DC Comics, Cartoon Network, etc.

Dedication: This story was originally intended as a Christmas gift to Mooncat, who has been a faithful fan of Diana/Audrey since the first chapter. Thanks go to Princess Alexandria, for her feedback and webpage design.

* * *

Part One - "Bettering a World"

Chapter 1

When Diana found herself standing on a catwalk suspended over the monitor room of the Watchtower mere moments after Circe's trap, she was so startled that she lurched backward. Had she been standing a few steps back, she might very well have gone over the railing.

Bewildered, Diana looked left and right. Why had Circe sent her back to the Watchtower?

As she bent over the railing to look below her, however, she realized something was different. This was not the Watchtower she knew. The design was different. Instead of a single bank of computers meant for one user, there were rows of consoles, each manned by an individual. Ordinary humans, it appeared, from their identical attire.

"Is this the future?" she whispered.

Her eyes drifted to the right and spotted a familiar shade of green. She almost sent a thought J'onn's way to ask if Circe was still in Spain when she froze. The thought went unsent, as her synapses seemed to stop working.

J'onn's outfit was as different as the Watchtower layout. He now wore a bodysuit in a shade of midnight green with broad blue bands around his wrists and a red circular emblem on his chest.

Different, but NOT unfamiliar.

"By the gods," Diana said, but only her lips moved. No sound came forth.

Circe had done her worst this time. She had sent Wonder Woman to a particular kind of Tartarus.

She was in the Justice Lords' universe now.

He stared at her intently from below once he spotted her, and she felt a tickle at her brain. Turning on her heel, she strode purposefully down the catwalk and out of sight. She tried to create the impression that she had somewhere to be, and was not simply fleeing from detection.

When she found herself in a deserted corridor, she leaned against the wall and exhaled deeply. Hopefully his arms would not come through the walls and grab her. If he had noticed how she wasn't dressed like her Justice Lord counterpart, J'onn would be doubly suspicious.

As she tried to weigh her options, her eyes traveled downward.

The feeling of growing horror seemed to swell. Diana took in the golden W on her red bodysuit that covered her torso and legs. Slowly she raised a hand and felt her forehead. There was no cool tiara resting on her brow. She let her fingers run through hair that was much too short.

The blood drained from Diana's face as she understood that Circe had done more than just send her to the world of the Justice Lords. She needn't fear J'onn noticing anything different about her. The sorceress known for transforming men - had turned the Amazon into a Justice Lord herself.

"Oh, Hera."

Diana rarely felt fear. Those times when Audrey had been in danger were exceptions. Now, however, she slipped perilously close to panic. "No, no," she whispered, shutting her eyes and willing this nightmare away.

"He really must be trying to get into your head."

Wonder Woman gasped as she opened her eyes and spun around. Hawkgirl was standing nearby, piercing eyes gazing out from eyeholes in a golden helmet. Her visage was familiar and disturbing at the same time. "What?" she asked, unable to think of a better reply.

Hawkgirl gestured in the direction of her forehead. "You were concentrating so hard. I thought your immunity to mental attacks included uninvited Martian mental probes. What does J'onn want from you?"

"N-nothing," Diana finally answered. Hawkgirl obviously had seen Diana and J'onn looking at each other, and had assumed there was some form of mental communication going on. The notion that J'onn could read the truth in her mind produced a quick stab of fear when she remembered Hawkgirl was right. Her resistance to psionic attacks would interpret J'onn's telepathy as such if he attempted to read her mind without permission. "He's just paranoid. Please don't mention this to the others. It will only make him worse."

Shayera chuckled. "I wasn't aware we could GET any more paranoid than we are now. How are you doing? You don't look so good."

"I think I may have - picked up something," Diana murmured. "Why did you follow me?"

"John wanted to know if you were interested in dinner."

Diana had absolutely no idea how long she was going to be in this place, but she knew the last thing she wanted to do was spend an hour in close quarters with two fallen superheroes. She began to grow calm as her horror was supplanted by a welcome emotion - rage. Seeing Hawkgirl like this, remembering what these Lords had allowed themselves to become - it still sickened her. "No, thank you," she said. "I would prefer not to have company tonight."

"Oh," Hawkgirl said, surprised. "Okay then. I'll see you tomorrow then. Unless there's an emergency before then, but how often does that happen any more?"

"Not very," Diana agreed. Not when disturbing the peace could get you killed. She clenched her fist. Her "corruption" was a running joke between her and Audrey, but it wasn't so funny when she saw real corruption in someone who was a friend in her home world.

Once Hawkgirl was gone, Diana began walking toward what she hoped was still her rooms. It was possible that the Lords' Wonder Woman was somewhere else on the station, but she thought it likely, if appalling, that her spirit had somehow inhabited the body of her parallel self. She thought hard, but she couldn't detect any additional presences. Either the true Wonder Woman was completely submerged, or was - somewhere else.

But then where was her body?

She discovered something else which was both a relief and a worry. While she still had all of her own memories, she had none of the body she inhabited. Diana didn't know how many deaths this Wonder Woman had caused, but she was grateful that she couldn't remember any of them. On the other hand, she had no idea what kind of relationship she had with the others. She might betray her ignorance if she spent any time with the other Lords.

Relationship . . . what about Audrey?

Diana knew from interrogating her double back in her own dimension that Audrey had died when the orbital mass driver fired its last meteor at the Kasnian royal palace, their paths never having crossed. But she had no idea if she was in the past, present, or future.

In fact, she realized she didn't even know what universe she was in right now. It couldn't be the dimension the Justice Lords had come from, not in the present day anyway, since the Lords were powerless and confined in cells on _her_ Watchtower. But there might be a hundred other dimensions where the Justice Lords controlled the planet, and this could be any of them. She might not even be a Justice Lord at all. Perhaps the only difference between this place and her home was a difference in costumes.

She held out little hope for that, however. Hawkgirl's comment about the rarity of emergencies suggested something was very wrong with this place.

As Diana arrived at her door and breathed a sigh of relief when she opened it and found her quarters, she decided that the first priority was to access the computer database and determine what exactly was different about this world. If these Justice Lords were anything like the ones she'd met, then she needed to escape as soon as possible. No matter how bad things seemed, she would have to make the best of it. Even if it included taking on the Lords singlehandedly.

And she needed to know if Audrey was alive.

Sitting down at her computer console, she turned on the screen. It was then that Diana discovered her plans, unformed as they were, had gone right out the window.

"Greetings, Justice Lords," the man on her monitor said.

"Vandal Savage," Diana snarled, instinctively scowling at the man who almost took everything from her Audrey.

"You may recognize me. I am Vandal Savage the Third, ruler of Kasnia," he continued, and Diana grew quiet. "I am not, however, in Kasnia at this time. In fact, I am closer to you than you could possibly imagine."

His face was replaced onscreen by the image of a space station Diana recognized, as she slowly realized this was a variation on a play she was quite familiar with. "I am here, on the international space station. You could come for me, I suppose, as I've hacked into your systems with this transmission. However, you might wish to see this first."

The image focused on a system of concentric rings jutting out from one end of the station, and Diana knew what would happen even before he did.

"I've made some modifications to the station in the past weeks," Savage continued. "Although in truth, it's no longer a station. It's actually a weapon. The mass driver I've installed has transformed the station into the world's largest rail gun, capable of attracting meteors and redirecting them at great speeds in any direction I choose."

She watched, sick, as Vandal proved the truth of his words by having a meteor fired at great velocity toward the Earth. She was more than willing to wager there were American ships close to where the meteor would land, and lives would be lost.

"Consider that a warning shot," Savage said when he reappeared. "Just because I was aiming for the Pacific shouldn't let you believe that I am not willing to sacrifice lives for the greater goal of freedom."

Diana shook her head, knowing that he was more than willing to sacrifice as many lives as it took if it suited his self-interest. Not that the Lords were much better - sacrificing freedom for the greater goal of justice.

"All we require is that the Justice Lords must stop interfering in the affairs of Kasnia, as well as the countries in our 'sphere of influence'. Unless our demands are met," Savage said coldly, "the next one will be fired directly into the heart of your precious Watchtower, the lynchpin of your Earth monitoring system. Without it, you won't be able to play God so effectively. The loss of Kasnia is a small price to pay, compared to losing your grip on the planet."

The camera panned to his right, and Diana's heart leapt into her throat. "I will be your puppet no longer," Audrey said without a trace of humor in her eyes. "I am Queen Audrey I, but I am also a revolutionary, willing to risk my own life to help guarantee that my people shall answer to no one but God Himself. Try to stop us, and the loss we suffer will last for but a second. While your defeat will haunt you in the days to come."

Savage came over and rested a hand on her shoulder. "Release our home," he said, "or you Lords will be out one castle."

Then the screen went dark.

Diana put a hand to the screen, as if she might stop Audrey's face from vanishing. The Kasnian had never been one to quote God, but in a world like this, where a half-dozen superheroes meted out "justice" as if they were themselves gods, she could understand.

More importantly, she understood just how much trouble Audrey was in. Savage's gamble was bold but desperate. If the Lords attacked en masse, there was a chance they could deflect any meteors fired the Watchtower's way. Knowing their brand of lethal justice, Diana doubted the Lords would take prisoners. It didn't matter if this was her Audrey or not - Diana would rather stop breathing than allow harm to come to her.

And no matter how dangerous the Lords were, that weapon could not be allowed to remain in the hands of a man like Savage, she reflected as she began walking toward the conference room where she knew the others would gather. He wasn't doing this for Kasnia. He was doing this because he wanted the entire world. No matter what he said now, she guessed that he planned to destroy the Watchtower within hours. Undoubtedly he would rain armageddon down on any other force that dared to refuse him.

So, all she had to do was stop Savage, destroy the rail gun, and prevent the Lords from killing Audrey. It was a tall order.

She paused. Since she was shouldering so much as if she were Atlas holding up the Earth, why not carry it one step further?

Why not, indeed?

Wonder Woman continued walking, thinking intently on ways she might accomplish all she wished, including defeating the Justice Lords themselves.

To be continued . . .


	3. Bettering a World, Chapter Two

Amazon Stories – Bettering a World

(see previous chapter for disclaimers)

Chapter 2

Diana took a moment to collect her thoughts before she entered the room. Beyond the unpleasant task of having to share a room with six heroes who, in her view, had disgraced the very word "justice", there was the far more difficult chore of pretending to be one of them. She couldn't voice her disapproval of them, couldn't even show it on her face.

There was some justification for not voicing anything at all. Having no idea just how much this dimension had in common with her own, virtually any remark she might make could figuratively set off a landmine. Had these Justice Lords gone back in time to stop Vandal Savage during World War II, or was this their first encounter with his megalomania?

She didn't even know if the Flash was alive in this world. According to the Justice Lords imprisoned in the Watchtower in her home dimension, the Flash had died fighting the forces of evil.

Diana resolved to say as little as possible at first, until she began to get some idea of what drama she'd been unceremoniously dropped into.

So she tried to look angry and not in the mood for conversation when she entered. That didn't stop her from pausing on the threshold as she saw the face of the man who had fallen the farthest.

"Good, you finally made it," Superman said in his white-and-blue costume. "Now that we're all here . . ."

Diana noted that Flash was missing, and Superman's first words meant he was almost certainly dead.

"How do we respond to this?" Superman asked.

"We know what Savage is capable of," the Green Lantern said bluntly. "We saw what he tried to do sixty years ago. This doesn't have a goddamn thing to do with Kasnia. He wants the entire planet."

"That was his grandfather," Superman pointed out. "We don't know what kind of ambitions Vandal Savage the III has."

"This amounts to little more than extortion on a massive scale," Batman observed. "And in my experience, extortionists never stop with their initial demand."

"I'm sure nobody here is suggesting that we give Savage what he wants," Superman said. "But we need to know how dangerous he is, what he's willing to do. Could he use that weapon of his against Earth a second time?"

"Preliminary reports indicate there were three US Navy ships in the vicinity when the meteor struck the Pacific Ocean," J'onn said dispassionately. "The tidal waves swamped the ships. The casualties will number in the hundreds."

"Yes, but did he know those ships were in the area when he targeted the Earth?" Hawkgirl wondered.

"Seems like a hell of a coincidence to me," Green Lantern muttered.

Superman looked at Diana. "Wonder Woman, you seem quiet. Any thoughts?"

She glared at him. "I don't see why we're debating his possible intentions. No one can be allowed to possess a weapon like that, certainly not _Vandal Savage_," she said coldly. "He needs to be stopped immediately."

"We should have been able to see this coming," Batman said. "Instead we were completely blindsided. This has been a major intelligence failure."

"We can rectify that situation when this is over," Hawkgirl pointed out. "Once we make sure that neither Savage nor his bride survive the incident, we can make sure that a more trustworthy government is put in place."

Diana felt her stomach turn to ice as Shayera casually discussed Audrey's death. But the ice melted as her anger burned hotter. She couldn't allow these people near the Kasnian queen, whether she was married to Vandal or not.

"I agree," Superman said. "On the other hand, we could have a meteor headed in the Watchtower's direction at any moment. We need to develop a plan for how to protect the station in that event. Evasive manuevers, blasting it from space, whatever."

"Fine," Diana agreed. "But while the rest of you are doing that, I'll take care of Savage myself."

"Excuse me, but I don't think that's a good idea, Wonder Woman," Superman said. "I know we all have a history with this man after seeing what he almost transformed the Earth into - "

And yet the Justice Lords had built a dictatorship of their own. His hypocrisy shocked her.

"But this isn't a one-man operation. I'll lead the mission - "

"No," Diana said, rising from her chair. "If we go in there guns blazing, then we'd BETTER have a contingency plan for protecting the Watchtower, because he'll have more than enough time to fire a shot in our direction. And while our glorious brigade is dealing with THAT meteor, he'll be firing another right behind it. This mission requires maximum stealth. And that can best be achieved by _me_."

"If anyone here understands the value of stealth, it's me," Batman said. "But why do you think it should be you, and not one of the rest of us?"

She paused for the briefest of moments. So far the Lords had described events that had taken place in her own world as well. She could only pray to Hera that their worlds shared something else as well. "The invisible jet," she said. "I'm betting they won't be able to pick it up on their sensors. And my jet only seats two."

"Then why not bring a partner?" Superman asked.

Diana was relieved that her gamble had paid off, but only slightly so. This would be a lot easier if she could go on her own . . . "Because you and GL are best-equipped to physically redirect any incoming projectiles away from the Watchtower. We need the minds of J'onn and Batman to devise a way to alter the Watchtower's orbit. And Hawkgirl . . ."

"What about her?" GL asked belligerently.

But Shayera chuckled. "Have you seen her cockpit?" she asked rhetorically. "There's no way I can fit inside with my wings."

"I'm not sure," Superman began, doubt in his eyes.

Diana leaned on the table with both hands. Her eyes bored into his. "Vandal Savage is the kind of power-mad, warmongering _man_ who the Amazons were meant to counter. He's mine, Superman. We can either agree about this - or we can continue to argue about this, eating up time we don't have. And I'll get what I want in the end. You _know_ I will."

Superman regarded her sourly. "Probably," he acknowledged. "All right, then. Batman, you and J'onn get down to Engineering. GL, Hawkgirl and I will man the ramparts. Wonder Woman, when you have that rail gun offline, you call us in, and we'll dismantle it permanently. But if you get into any trouble, we're not going to wait for Savage to push the red button. We'll stop him first. We ARE the Justice Lords, after all."

Diana's lip curled slightly. "I'll leave shortly."

When she left the room, she felt her brow and wiped a tiny bead of sweat that was just emerging from her hairline. That had been - uncomfortable.

She'd succeeded, however. She just needed to return to her room for something first.

* * *

"So, what's a girl gotta do to arrange a meeting with your boss? Say 'take me to your leader'?"

The two guards spun around, startled. What they saw spooked them even more, and one fired off a shot.

In almost irritated fashion, Diana raised one arm and casually blocked it with her bracelet. "Try to be careful with those guns. Wouldn't want to shoot a hole in the only thing keeping us safe from the vacuum of space," she continued in flawless Kasnian. As Audrey had become a larger and larger part of her life, Diana had taken it upon herself to learn more of her homeland's customs, as well as its language.

"Security!" the other guard barked into the commlink on his shoulder. "We have a breach in sector . . ."

Diana sighed and raised her hands above her head. "I'm not here to fight, boys. I'm here to speak with Savage. I bring a proposal for him."

The guards' communicators crackled. "Security breach! Report!"

Diana clenched her fists. Even Savage's voice set her on edge.

The second guard took two wary steps backward. "It's Wonder Woman, sir. She says she wishes to talk."

There was a pause, followed by a surprised bark of laughter. "Talk?" Savage asked. "I thought the Justice Lords only knew how to command."

"I could have approached you directly, Savage," Diana said before the guards could reply. "But I'm not sure your body would have appreciated it."

"Hmph. Very well. You do of course realize that you've abandoned the element of surprise. If you try anything funny, I can blast the Watchtower to rubble before you could do anything."

"Which, I should think, convinces you of my - sincerity."

"I'm only convinced that you're trying to trick me," Vandal replied. "Still, I will have my men escort you to the control room. Minus any weapons, of course."

Diana's eyes traveled down to her waist. "Just my lariat," she said.

One guard reached out and, with the utmost of care, disengaged it from her waist. "I have it, sir."

"Good. Bring her in. Savage out."

Diana clasped her hands behind her back. "Shall we get this over with?"

The other guard brusquely gestured with his gun for her to follow. "How do you come to know our language?" he asked as they walked.

"I'm fascinated by your kingdom," Diana murmured.

"Ha! I'll bet you are!"

"Perhaps you could tell me about your leader?"

"We will not tell you anything of our king, justice bitch!" the guard behind her grunted.

"Actually," she said calmly, "I was referring to youe queen. The one who was your princess long before she married Vandal Savage."

Neither spoke for a moment. "She knows when to lead and when to follow," one finally said gruffly.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"She is a symbol for our people. By her bravery in coming on this mission, she inspired our people. But she wisely allows her husband to lead. King Vandal will be our savior."

"She must love him very much, this savior of Kasnia," Diana said.

He shrugged. "It is her place to love him."

She closed her eyes and shook her head. Even though this wasn't HER Audrey, she was trying very hard not to think about how Audrey and Savage had almost certainly consummated their marriage more than once.

"What?" the guard behind her said.

"Nothing. What have you done with the scientists stationed on this satellite?"

But the guards evidently felt this wasn't for her ears, as they stopped talking.

Pensive, Diana almost didn't notice when they stopped. The guard in front opened the large doors before them, and continued inside.

Diana took a few steps inside and stopped. Before her, near a computer console which probably controlled the mass driver, stood Vandal Savage. And Audrey - not her Audrey, but Audrey nonetheless - was standing at his side. His hand rested on her shoulder.

Her heart lurched into her throat, but she swallowed and refused to show how the sight of Audrey affected her.

"Wonder Woman. What an unexpected surprise," Savage said urbanely. "Allow me to introduce my wife, Queen Audrey."

"A pleasure," Diana said gravely.

But Audrey's eyes smoldered. "It would be a greater pleasure if I could force you through an airlock. You and your fellow Lords, you have oppressed my people for too long."

"Now, now, Audrey," Savage said, while Diana paled to hear her beloved Audrey's voice speak to her with such venom. "She comes to us in peace. I was sure you Lords would be blundering in any time now."

"You didn't make our decision any easier, Savage," Diana said calmly. "Sphere of influence? Just what in Hera's name is that supposed to mean?"

"Ah," Savage said, nodding. "A fair question. I was referring to the countries immediately adjacent to our borders - Croatia, Albania . . ."

"The rest of the Baltic states, basically," Diana said.

"In a nutshell. You speak our language very well, by the way."

"I had a good teacher," she replied. "It's very noble of you to include those countries in your list of demands, especially considering some of them have been enemies of Kasnia in the past."

"I have always lived in the shadow of my grandfather's legacy," Savage told her. "So, too, has Kasnia labored under decades of strife with its neighbors. I am hoping we can all move forward, having been granted a second chance."

"So you're not planning on using the rail gun to dominate these other countries and create your own miniature empire," Diana retorted.

"I'm offended by the very suggestion. Especially coming from you, one of six self-styled masters of the Earth."

"Pot calling the kettle black?"

He tightened his jaw. "I resent this stream of implications. Together Audrey and I will protect Kasnia's independence from the likes of you. And if you don't comply with our demands, your headquarters will be shot from the sky."

Diana had decided she'd had enough. She had hoped to get some idea of what relationship Audrey and Vandal had, but the queen was deferring him all the way. If Audrey really loved her husband, then what she was about to do might destroy her. But if Diana did nothing, then the Justice Lords would most assuredly destroy her.

"I take it back," she said. "You don't want to control the Baltic States. You want the planet for yourself."

He chuckled. "What kind of megalomaniac do you take me for, Wonder Woman? A Justice Lord?"

"How about a lunatic who has spent the last _twenty-five thousand years_ trying to obtain absolute power!" Diana retorted icily.

Savage just stared at her, at a loss for words. It was Audrey who replied. She laughed. "Now I understand how your kind can live with yourselves. You're all insane!"

"I don't think so," Diana said. "I guess your husband hasn't told you about how he spent the night next to a fallen meteorite thousands of years ago, and when he woke up the following morning, the radiation had given him immortality, including the ability to heal any injury in a matter of seconds. Or how there IS no Vandal Savage III. There's always been just the one - early man, sociopath, Nazi war criminal, _liberator_ of Kasnia," she sneered.

"That's - quite a tale you've spun," Vandal said, laughing weakly as he reached into his pocket. Then his eyes narrowed. "There's something different about you, isn't there?"

"You mean aside from her far-fetched lies?" Audrey asked, folding her arms.

He focused on Diana's forehead. "I don't recall seeing you wearing a tiara in recent photos," he said. "Hand it over."

"Sure," she said, reaching up and removing the familiar, cool headpiece from her brow. Instead of tossing it to him, she barreled into him. Taking the tiara in one hand, she pulled back slightly as she struck him and, turning, slashed him across the cheek with the edge of her tiara.

Vandal reared back, but as he did, he withdrew a small device from his pocket. Pointing it at her, he managed to fire, hitting her with a concentrated burst of energy. Diana screamed and flew backwards. Part of her brain noted that he'd shot her with the very same gun his counterpart in her dimension had used during Audrey's wedding. The rest of her just hurt as she slammed into the wall and slid down.

"A poor ruse, Wonder Woman," he hissed, readying another blast.

Diana panted heavily. "Audrey, look," she whispered, pointing weakly at Savage's face.

Audrey couldn't help but turn, and she gasped.

The wicked slash left on Savage's cheek by Diana's tiara slowly healed and vanished.

The Kasnian queen stared at her husband. "Vandal?" she asked, stunned. "How did you do that?"

"It doesn't matter," he said. "What matters is that she dies. Then we destroy the Watchtower before her allies arrive."

But she put a hand on his arm. "No," she said. "What matters is that you tell your partner the truth. How did you DO that? She's - she's not telling the truth, is she? You can't possibly be 25,000 years old!"

He looked at her gently, then sighed. "I had hoped to put this off until later," he said regretfully.

Then he struck Audrey across the face with his free hand. Audrey cried out and fell to the floor.

"But I'll try to console myself with the loss of your consortium while I'm ruling this planet," he added mockingly. "Which begins with the death of . . ."

Diana no longer lay on the floor. Now she stood before him. Pain had fled in the face of the adrenaline generated by the sight of Audrey being hurt. "Hera, grant me mercy," she growled, clenching her fists as she glared at him with murder in her eyes. "Or I may find out what the limits of your healing powers really are."

To be continued . . .


	4. Bettering a World, Chapter Three

Amazon Stories – Bettering a World

(see first chapter for disclaimers)

Chapter 3

"My dear," Savage said coolly, "you have no idea what I'm capable of."

"I've got a pretty good idea," Diana replied before slamming her fist into his face and knocking him across the room. She cast a glance at Audrey and saw she was still, mercifully, unconscious.

"You seem to care about her."

Diana looked back and saw Savage had already regained his feet. He rubbed at his jaw - for all she knew, he was locking it back into place. "She's one of your victims, isn't she? You used her to get into this position."

"True, but what does it matter to you? The Justice Lords have always been willing to sacrifice the good of a few when they think it benefits the needs of the many. What's one more mortal who will face capital punishment if she's captured?"

"The killing stops with yours," Diana snarled.

He chuckled. "Well, since that's never going to happen, I guess the killing will continue to go on, won't it?" He pushed a button on his belt.

The doors re-opened, and fifteen men rushed in with laser rifles. "She's injured the Queen!" Savage barked, pointing at Diana. "Kill her!"

Diana didn't even bother to deny it. She was the one closest to Audrey, and she had a reputation to compete with. At least being close to Audrey meant it would be easier to get her out of the crossfire. She swiftly bent over, picked Audrey up in her arms, and sped backwards, looking for somewhere safe where her unconscious form could be placed.

"She has the Queen!" one of the men shouted in Kasnian. "Hold your fire!"

"Idiots!" Savage shouted in turn. "If Wonder Woman escapes, she brings the entire Justice Lords down on our heads, and we all perish! Fire!"

There was a moment's hesitation before a hail of laser fire erupted behind her, but a mild burn on her left calf was the only injury she suffered as their slowness enabled her to flee the control room. She flew down the corridor and, taking the first door she found, was relieved to find it empty.

"Don't wake up yet, love," Diana whispered, kissing Audrey on the forehead. "I'll be back shortly."

They found her a few seconds later. She made an irritated noise as she deflected their blasts with practiced ease. "We can keep this up all night, boys," she said. "Because he's right. The other Justice Lords will be here any minute while you're failing to kill me."

Some of her attackers cast worried glances at each other.

"Oh, but don't worry," Diana added. "I don't see your king here. Obviously he'll live to scheme another day."

"What, you expect us to surrender?" one sneered. "You'll kill us yourself!"

"Or you could get to the escape pods," she said. "I have bigger fish to fry."

A storm of fire was loosed by the Kasnians. Every shot was either evaded or blocked.

"But if you want to fry instead . . . " Diana said, shrugging.

A moment later, one of the men threw down his gun and ran in the other direction. He broke the Kasnians' will, and they all fled from her.

"Well, Diana," she said to herself. "Your reputation, reprehensible as it may be, does have its uses."

* * *

"Superman," J'onn said sharply, drawing the anxious Kryptonian near.

"What?"

"Sensors indicate that a large number of escape pods have jettisoned from the station. It appears Wonder Woman may have been successful."

Superman nodded. "It appears so. Still, you get the others and have them meet me there in the Javelin. I'm going on ahead."

* * *

"How dare they run!" Savage growled at the computer screen. "I gave no such order!"

"I guess they're more afraid of me than they are of you."

Savage looked over his shoulder. "Well. You're just in time to hear me set the tune, Wonder Woman." He slammed a button on the console with his fist.

"No!" Diana cried out, flying towards him.

He turned toward her, back to the screen. "It's too late. The station has already been programmed with coordinates. In less than five minutes, the first meteor will have been redirected by the mass driver toward the Watchtower. And after that . . ." He gestured to the screen.

She looked up and saw the map of Europe. "What have you done!" she gasped.

"I've set the coordinates for several more strikes after that one," he told her. "Meteorites will hit some of the largest military installations in Europe, paving the way for the Kasnian army to take advantage and begin its conquest. Neither the mortals nor the Lords will be able to put up much resistance."

"You're insane," Diana said. "I think you've fatally underestimated the Justice Lords. They don't need the Watchtower to come down to Earth and pulverize your forces - if you even make it back to Earth in one piece."

"Perhaps," he acknowledged. "But what are you going to do about it? Only I have the password. I could be persuaded to redirect the attack on the Watchtower - IF you Lords grant me free rein in Europe."

"Or I could destroy this station," she said.

"If you do," Savage replied, "you'll cause even more damage. The meteor is already being inexorably pulled in this direction. If the station isn't here to redirect its path toward the Watchtower, it will continue on its direct course and land - oh, somewhere in the American Midwest. Who knows how many will die then? And you seem to be in such a humanitarian mood today. It wouldn't be fair to me if I didn't _exploit_ it."

"Or I could just let you destroy the Watchtower, then annihilate this station before it attracts a second meteor," Diana said thoughtfully.

He laughed. "Self-sacrifice? Wonder Woman, your Lords don't know the meaning of the word."

"I am _not_ a Justice Lord," Diana retorted acidly before pouncing on him. A startled raise of the eyebrow was about all he had time for before she pummeled him into unconsciousness. She didn't let up until she was sure he wouldn't wake up again any time soon, even with his healing factor.

Then she looked up at the screen. If the Watchtower were destroyed, it would cripple the Justice Lords' ability to monitor and control the human population. They'd still be nearly unstoppable, but "nearly" was the key word.

First, however, she had to get Audrey to safety.

Taking a few seconds to destroy the computer console and prevent Batman or anyone else from rerouting the meteor, she then rushed back to where she'd left the princess, and found Audrey groaning as she finally woke. She saw Diana coming and cried out, cringing.

Diana braked to a stop. "Please, Audrey, it's all right. We've got to get you out of here. This station won't be in one piece much longer."

Audrey looked at her with a combination of mistrust and bewilderment. "Why should I believe you?"

"Because you'd be dead already if I wanted to kill you," Diana said. "I'm a Justice Lord, remember?" she added sorrowfully. And to the people of Earth, that was all she'd ever be, no matter what she did. Even if they made it out of this, the prospect of being condemned to serve her evil twin's penance for her was a daunting one. But she could no more stop fighting for justice, and not the perverted justice the Lords sought, than she could return to Themiscyra.

"True," Audrey admitted. "What about Vandal?"

"He can die for all I care," Diana said coldly. "Although I'm not sure he can." She held out her hand.

Audrey slowly took it. "He really is what you said he is. He's 25,000 years old?"

"There are people with all sorts of powers in this world," Diana said. "Why can't immortality be one of them? Look, I can explain later, but I've got to get you to my jet. If one of the other Lords finds you here, they might - "

"Might what, Wonder Woman?"

Diana nearly jumped. She turned around. "Superman?"

He approached her with an implacable look in his eye. "You must have been pretty distracted if you didn't hear me come smashing through the outer hull, Diana."

"Well, I was beating Savage into a coma. I suppose I might have missed it," Diana said tensely.

"Really? You're not his ally?" Superman asked.

"Ally!"

"You seem awfully concerned about her welfare," he pointed out, looking at Audrey, who moved behind Diana.

"She's an innocent, if the concept has any meaning left for you," Diana said. "I won't let her be harmed."

Superman's eyes narrowed. "And the mass driver?"

"Disabled," she lied. "I destroyed the console so no coordinates could be programmed. You'll find Savage nearby."

"I'll be sure to do that," he said. "For now, however, I need you to step aside."

Now his eyes began to glow.

Diana felt Audrey trembling, and her anger toward this twisted Superman grew. "No," she told him. "If our alliance means anything to you, you'll spare me her life."

"If our alliance meant anything to you, you'd step aside," Superman reminded her. "She's threatened our world order once. She can't be allowed to a second time."

"If you harm a hair on her head - " Diana warned him.

"You'll what?" he asked.

Before she could answer, Superman blasted her with his heat rays. She brought her arms up partially, but even her bracelets weren't a complete defense against his power, and Diana screamed as she was thrown backwards, her body smoking.

Audrey shrieked as she dove out of the way. "Wonder Woman!"

"Strange," Superman said. "What is it about you that's so important to her?"

"I was hoping she'd tell me, actually," Audrey said. She would have said more, like perhaps a show of defiance, but her mouth had become dry.

"I'll ask her for both of us," he replied, grabbing her by the arm.

"Don't TOUCH HER!"

Diana hit him with both fists before Superman could even react to her voice. He grunted as she flew like an arrow, knocking him all the way down the corridor.

He rolled onto his back and rubbed his head. When he looked at her, his eyes widened. "Diana?"

"Oh, come on, Clark," she said. "You know it takes more than that to stop me." Diana looked down at herself. His heat rays had burned away the red Justice Lord costume, revealing the old red-white-and-blue garment she'd found in her double's closet and put on underneath the hated red-and-gold. Evidently even she hadn't been ready to let go of that part of her past. "Thanks for the heat rays, though. I find fire purifies, it really does."

"What did you just call me?" Superman asked angrily.

"Don't worry. Unlike some people I know, she can be trusted." Diana couldn't see the astonished look on Audrey's face behind her, but she could imagine how confused the princess felt. "As for this, I think a return to the old ways is best."

"We can't go back to that," he said.

"Maybe not. But by Hera, Earth certainly can."

Enraged, he flew at her. She was keeping better check on her anger, however, and she met him perfectly, dodging an outstretched fist and meeting him with one of her own. The momentum was redirected as he flew upward through the ceiling, coming to a stop three levels above.

"Come on," she said, grabbing Audrey. "He'll be back soon. We've got to get out of here. Don't ask," she added as Audrey opened her mouth. "We just don't have the time."

Carrying Audrey in her arms, Diana flew as fast as she possibly could, changing direction several times to help elude her pursuer. Fortunately, he didn't find her. Whether it was because she'd outflown him, or because he'd gone to check on the control room, she couldn't know. Frankly, she didn't care. As long as he didn't wreck anything BEFORE the meteor entered the coils of the rail gun and changed direction . . .

There was nothing more to be done, though. She powered up the jet, set it to invisible mode, and rocketed away from the station and towards Earth.

* * *

"Place seems quiet," Green Lantern observed as they docked the Javelin.

"Everyone appears to have fled," Hawkgirl reminded him. "We're the only ones here now."

"If we can destroy the rail gun without destroying the entire station," Batman suggested, "we can plot the trajectories of the escape pods and round up the suspects."

"Good idea," J'onn said as they disembarked and found Superman waiting for them.

"Don't bother, we're leaving right now," Superman said, his fists clenched and jaw set.

"What? What about the mass driver? And Diana?" Hawkgirl asked, confused.

Superman glared at her. "Wonder Woman interfered with the mission. Suddenly she seems to disagree with our methods. She escaped with the Kasnian princess."

"You must be mistaken, Superman," J'onn said, shocked.

"She hit me pretty hard, J'onn!" Superman snapped. "I think she made it clear!"

"But - "

"Don't worry about the station, she disabled it! Let's just - "

"Wait," Batman said. "She's abandoned the Justice Lords, and you still trust her when she says she disabled the station?"

Superman stared at him for a moment before he literally shook with rage. "Damn it," he growled. "Now I've got to check - "

"What's that tremor?" John interrupted.

J'onn rushed back into the Javelin and activated sensors. "There's an incoming object of great mass approaching the station at a very high speed. Sensors indicate it will impact in - "

The entire station shook, and then grew still again.

"Correction," J'onn said quietly. "No impact. The meteor has been redirected towards the Watchtower, just as Savage predicted. Impact in one minute."

Superman stood frozen for a moment before he slammed his fist into the wall. "The rest of you, destroy this thing before it fires off another shot! I've got to stop it!"

"Superman, it's too dangerous!" Hawkgirl said.

"Incoming transmission," J'onn said. "It's being transmitted over the entire Watchtower, as well as the Javelin frequency."

"Patch it into my communicator," Superman said grimly. "I don't have time." He put his space helmet back on and disappeared.

* * *

"To those men and women who have faithfully served on the Watchtower," Diana's voice echoed across the space station, making people stop and look up, "there is an incoming projectile that will surely destroy the station, or at least damage it so severely that it will be unable to support life. You must get to the transporters and escape to the Earth's surface immediately."

"And when you get to Earth, be sure and tell them - it was I who caused this. May this be the first step in ending the Justice Lords' reign once and for all."

The last few words were only heard by a few as the crew members rushed, panicked, for the teleporters.

* * *

Superman shook his head in amazement. End the Lords' reign? Her against the others? What had gotten into her?

If he'd only known what was currently in her.

He passed the meteor as it sped toward the Watchtower, and his confidence dimmed as he took in its size. It dwarfed him. But he was the only possible savior for the Watchtower - and perhaps the free world he'd created.

Getting in front of the monstrous projectile, Superman slammed his hands into the rock and pushed in the opposite direction.

* * *

Diana sighed as she deactivated the transmission. Hopefully the others were dismantling the rail gun now. As for the people on the Watchtower - she had to trust they would be safe.

"Why have you done this?"

She looked back at Audrey, who was watching her intently. "I had a change of heart," Diana said. "What the Lords are doing is wrong. They must be stopped."

"They? _You're_ a Lord, and you talk like you're someone else! And why me?"

"I told Superman, you're an - "

"An innocent, right. I doubt it," Audrey said dryly. "But you seem to have been awfully worried about my well-being. And why was it necessary for you to prove to me that Vandal wasn't who he said he was? You could have stopped him and saved me in much less time."

Diana looked down. "I wanted to ease your pain. He was your husband, and he was doomed. I wanted you to . . . I wanted your trust."

"Why?"

" . . . If I tell you a secret, will you promise not to think I'm crazy?" Diana asked.

Audrey folded her arms. "What secret?"

"I'm - not the Wonder Woman you think I am."

"What, you're like some impostor?"

"Sort of. I'm from another world. On this other world, I'm also Wonder Woman, but I belong to the Justice League. There we believe in upholding the justice and human freedoms, not just the law."

"Right," Audrey said, plainly not believing it.

"It's true," Diana said. "And I knew you in my world. That was why it was so important for me to keep you safe."

"Knew me? How?"

"I saved you from an attempted terrorist kidnapping in Paris. Later we became friends, and then . . . something more."

Audrey chuckled. "So you're not a Justice Lord who has oppressed the planet in the name of order. You're a true heroine trapped in another woman's body, and you also happen to be my lover in your home world. Am I close?"

"Very," Diana admitted.

"And I should believe you because?"

Diana coughed into her fist. "You, um, have a mole on the inside of your right thigh. About - three centimeters below your - "

"All right!" Audrey interrupted, blushing furiously. "How the HELL did you know that?"

"I told you, we've been - intimate."

"I see. Anything else?"

"I don't know how long I'll be in this body. Maybe forever, maybe less." Diana frowned. "We should separate as soon as we get you someplace safe. I could become the other Diana again at any moment, and I don't know how she'll respond to my recent actions."

"Your little act of rebellion could come to naught, then," Audrey said. "If she returns, she'll go running back to being a Lord."

"Not after this," Diana disagreed. "My guess is, no matter how long I'm trapped here, my actions have committed her to this path. The Lords are her implacable enemy now, and they won't believe her if she claims someone else was behind the wheel. She has to choose between fighting - and dying." She paused. "If she returns? Do you believe me?"

"Maybe a little," Audrey admitted. "You seem nothing like a Justice Lord. And, well, you did know that frightfully personal tidbit about me. But how can I truly believe you?"

Diana set the ship to autopilot. "Maybe . . . if you're willing to take a chance, you can let me spend the rest of my life keeping you safe. The way I've kept you safe in my world, Audrey."

Audrey shook her head in bewilderment. "I hardly know what to say, dahling. Why would a woman such as yourself care so much for someone like me?"

"Love doesn't care about powers, Audrey."

The Kasnian blushed. "Well, I guess I should show my thanks in some way. You saved me from both those bastards Vandal AND Superman. Is there something I can do?"

Diana now turned red. "One thing would be nice."

"Oh?"

"A kiss?"

Audrey didn't move at first, but then a naughty smile grew across her face. "Does the Audrey in your world have you wrapped around her finger so?"

"It's a joke between us how she's corrupted me so," Diana said, smiling.

"Well, I suppose one kiss shouldn't be too hard."

Their lips approached, but before they met, a bright light lit their faces from outside. They pulled away. "What was that!" Audrey blurted out.

Diana checked her display, but she already knew. "The Watchtower," she said. "It exploded on impact."

"Step one?" Audrey asked.

"Step one."

"Then how about we get back to step two? After all, someone has to be on your side when you return to Earth."

Diana sighed. It would be a hard road.

But a kiss would lighten the journey.

She leaned forward again, and their lips met. A familiar spark danced between them.

The spark became something brighter, and Diana momentarily blacked out.

* * *

Diana swayed for a second as her eyes were assaulted by bright light. It took her a moment before she realized it was sunlight. "What?"

"I didn't say anything."

Spinning around, Diana saw Audrey again. Except they weren't on the invisible jet, and they weren't in space.

She was shocked to find they were on what appeared to be a large body of water, riding a craft of - Themiscyran manufacture?

And was Audrey dressed in traditional Amazonian garb?

Diana looked down at herself and realized she was dressed in just the same way.

"Are you all right, Diana?" Audrey asked, looking concerned. "You seem a bit lost."

"I - feel a bit lost," Diana admitted.

Audrey chuckled. "Don't worry, dear. I'm sure we'll find Aresia in no time, and once you're reunited with your one true love, you'll be back to normal."

Diana gaped at Audrey. "Oh, Hera . . ."

To be continued . . .


	5. The Kindly Ones, Chapter One

Amazon Stories - The Kindly Ones 

Chapter 1

"Diana? Is something the matter? You look unwell."

She felt like crying. That was a good indicator of how unwell Diana felt right now.

Once again, she'd found herself in an alien world - familiar, and yet horribly different. Here Audrey was mere feet from her, the woman she loved so completely. And she couldn't take her in her arms, because Audrey's chance remark indicated that in THIS world, her lover was . . .

Aresia.

"Seasickness, I guess," Diana murmured as she turned away. Her stomach churned. This new body seemed as foreign to her as the last one. Taking the man-hating adopted Amazon for a lover was almost as bizarre as murdering criminals. How had this happened?

"You?" Audrey asked doubtfully. "I've known you for years, Diana, and you've never been seasick." Then she nodded. "It must seem strange to you, but it's an ailment I'm quite familiar with. You, never having been away from Themiscyra, are not used to homesickness."

"You're saying I'm homesick?" Diana asked, filing every bit of information away. Audrey seemed to be saying that she lived on Themiscyra with Diana, which made no sense, especially considering they weren't a couple.

"It's perfectly natural," Audrey replied. "When I first became - well, I guess I was a prisoner, wasn't I? I was made to feel like a guest, but it's not like I was allowed to leave. Anyway, when that happened, I was homesick for weeks. You remember, don't you? You were with me every day."

Diana took a moment to respond. "Pining for Kasnia?"

"Kasnia, all of Man's World, actually. I wanted to party, not sit on an island that seemed to be set three thousand years in the past. And now the tables are turned. You're entering a world you've heard demonized, but you can't imagine what it's like."

"When did you stop feeling like a - prisoner?"

Audrey paused. "Well, that had nothing to do with being homesick. I felt like a prisoner for months, albeit one who had the best of friends in you," she added, smiling.

Diana flushed. Hera, she wanted to put her arms around her . . .

"As soon as I adjusted to life on Themiscyra," Audrey continued, "I got over being away from home. Besides, it DID get me out of that arranged marriage. Not that I wished Vandal dead, but I could never have loved him."

She felt chilled by the mention of his name. "I wouldn't be shocked if he managed to survive," she muttered.

"Oh, certainly. Like me, he survived a boat accident on the Mediterranean by being washed up on a hidden island populated solely by women. Or perhaps men, in his case." Audrey smiled wickedly. "Vandal and the Barbarians."

Diana couldn't help chuckling. "A Savage among savages?"

Audrey erupted with delighted laughter. "Why Diana, that's brilliant coming from you! And your sense of humor was so pedestrian when I arrived. I see I have corrupted you now."

She felt a twinge in her heart as this world's Audrey repeated what was a running joke in her own world. "Completely," Diana said softly.

"As for when I no longer felt like a hostage," Audrey went on, "you shouldn't have to ask. It was in this very craft, remember?"

"Oh, of course," Diana replied, although obviously she had no idea what Audrey was talking about.

Audrey smiled. "When you built this boat and taught me how to sail, I had no idea you were teaching me how to escape. I could have been quite the yachtswoman, had I gone along with the plan."

"You would never betray this island," Diana said, knowing precisely why Audrey had been kept on Themiscyra. She couldn't be allowed to divulge its whereabouts until the Amazons were confident that she would remain silent.

"Exactly what you told me," Audrey said. "Too bad I decided I liked it better here. All that work, gone to waste."

"Not entirely, if we're using the boat now."

"True. With certain technological upgrades, of course." Audrey looked down. "It's going to be all right, you know."

"What is?"

"Aresia."

Diana stiffened and continued staring in the other direction.

"I know you're upset," Audrey continued gently, "but look on the bright side - she did it for you."

"For me?"

"Hippolyta has never approved of your relationship with her, Diana. She just wants to prove herself. It's actually kind of romantic, if you ignore the fact that she removed the armor from the temple."

Diana was barely able to cry out at THAT revelation. Aresia had her armor! "That's one way of looking at it," she choked. "Or maybe she was running away."

"Well, I guess we'll ask her that when we find her, won't we? Your mother was quite clear. Both Aresia and the armor must be brought back. At least Aresia left the lariat, although I can't understand why."

Because the lariat compelled the holder to tell the truth, and Diana couldn't trust Aresia, no matter what dimension this was. Until she saw evidence to the contrary, she had to assume Aresia was still intent on her mad quest to rid the world of men. With the armor, bracelets, and tiara, she might actually succeed this time. "Perhaps she should have sent more of a recovery party then."

"She has confidence in you, Diana. Confidence that you'll do the right thing when you find her, as a true Princess. As for me, I may not have an Amazon's strength," Audrey said blithely, once again surprising Diana with her admission, "but I do know Man's World better than you OR Aresia. My knowledge of fashion may be five years stale, regrettably, but I think I can take care of us both."

Diana only nodded. Why had she been sent to this world? Why had she not remained in the Justice Lords' universe, or returned to her own? Perhaps there was a set time limit on her stay in these bodies. Perhaps - perhaps she'd spent the rest of her life bouncing from one world to another, never lingering for more than twelve hours, never finding a new home . . . this prospect was scarier than any encounter with Aresia.

* * *

One week later, Diana admitted that whatever else her problems might be, there was no definite limit on how long she might stay someplace.

She was undecided on whether this was a good thing or not. She'd spent this past week in the sweetest form of agony.

Audrey tossed the Italian newspaper aside. "This isn't getting us anywhere, darling. Granted, I'd forgotten how lovely Rome is this time of year. But we haven't seen any sign of Aresia in any of the international newspapers. She could be anywhere!"

Diana nodded, dreading the reason. She was probably already looking into recruiting the superpowered scum of the earth, putting her viral plans in motion.

At least said "superpowered scum" didn't include the Justice League. She'd swiftly verified that the League, not the Lords, existed in this world, and that they practiced a form of justice that was true to their ideals. The League was one short, of course. She'd considered trying to approach them for help, but Diana wasn't sure how she could convince them. If she tried to use the personal information she knew about them, she could be seen as an enemy.

"At least it hasn't been a total loss," Diana said.

"Oh?"

"You've given me wardrobe lessons."

Audrey grinned. "We do look rather stylish, don't we? Although I must confess, you have better instincts for dressing well than I would have guessed."

Yet another sign of how her Audrey had 'corrupted' her, teaching her a hundred lessons about fashion and looking your best. Diana's heart constricted as she thought back over the past week - spending all her time with Audrey, feeling completely free and at ease with her. Audrey was evidently her best friend. Just not her girlfriend.

She sensed Audrey didn't entirely approve of Aresia either. The subtle insults buried in her remarks would have gone over the head of Diana the Amazon, but Wonder Woman caught them and dwelled on their meaning. Was Audrey a good friend who didn't like seeing Diana with Aresia - and who could? - or was there something else?

"Perhaps - " Diana said hesitantly, "we should reconsider going to Kasnia."

Audrey became still. "No. No, I don't think we want to do that."

"Audrey, you're still the Princess. If you returned, you could use your government's resources to find her. Don't you even want to see your father?"

"Of course I do," Audrey sighed. "But if I go there, I'll never be allowed to leave. Can't you understand that? I do NOT want to be Queen. I've lived as an Amazon for too long to accept being tied down in marriage to a strange man."

"What if it's the only way to find her?"

"I doubt it. I mean, this is all about you. At worst, some day she'll materialize on the shores of Themiscyra with proof of her worth, whatever that may be."

Diana sighed. It SO tempted her. She could tell Audrey that she no longer loved Aresia, and that she had feelings for Audrey. Her double was making a huge mistake in involving herself with Aresia anyway . . .

She held back, however. The fact remained that this was another Diana's life she was interfering with. Perhaps she'd taken drastic steps in the body of the Justice Lord, but in her mind she was justified in doing what she did, justified by the greater good and her twin's own crimes. Here she had no such right. For all she knew, Aresia wasn't even a bad person in this world. She could no more break up the relationship, than she could accept someone doing the same in HER body.

"So what do we do?" Diana asked.

Audrey frowned. "I'm not sure," she said, irritated. "Perhaps we should find another Internet cafe. A search may turn up _something_ new."

Diana stood up alongside her. She walked with her. It was so like home.

And so very much not like home.

Then Audrey stopped. "Er, Diana?"

"What?"

She pointed to the television set. "Isn't that her?"

Diana looked at the storefront window behind which the TV sat. Then she gasped.

There she was. In HER armor. Diana ground her teeth together.

That wasn't all, however. The rest of the Justice League was with her. And they weren't taking her into custody.

They were announcing her inclusion.

"Fury?" Audrey asked. "Why is she calling herself Fury? Taking her name from the Erinyes strikes me as an odd selection for an Amazon."

"This can't be good," Diana said. "We'd better contact them."

"Contact them? Diana, I realize I haven't spoken about the Justice League to you, but they're not exactly approachable."

"Trust me. I've seen the wonders a telephone can accomplish." She led Audrey back to their hotel room without another word, astonishing her friend.

"Operator?" Diana asked after she picked up the phone. "I'd like to make a long-distance call . . . America . . . the main office at the Daily Planet, in Metropolis . . . grazie."

"Diana?" Audrey finally spoke, amazed.

Diana didn't say anything until someone picked up on the other end. "Hello? Clark Kent, please."

To be continued . . .


	6. The Kindly Ones, Chapter Two

Part Two 

"Diana!" Audrey hissed. "I don't care how much you think you've learned in a week, but put that phone down now! You can't just - "

"Clark Kent speaking."

"Kal-El," Diana murmured. "So nice to hear your voice."

Audrey stared at her, as Diana could only imagine Clark was staring at his phone. "I'm sorry, you must have the - " he began.

"How's Wally? Still moving too fast, never slowing down?"

"I don't know who you are or what you think you're doing - "

"I realize you don't have the privacy to discuss this, Kal," Diana interrupted. "So if you want to duck into an elevator shaft or wherever it is you change your clothes, and come to Room 224 at the Hotel Genio in Rome, we can talk about important matters like Aresia."

There was no answer. Diana suspected he'd left his desk as soon as she gave her location.

"_Who_ were you talking to just now?" Audrey asked, flabbergasted, "and why did it sound like you knew them?"

"Because I do," Diana said simply. "Sort of."

A familiar 'whoosh' was the only warning Diana had before a striking figure in blue and red floated before them. "So who are you?" Superman asked, a bit confused.

"Diana, Princess of Themiscyra," Diana told him. "This is my friend Audrey. We've come for our fellow Amazon, Aresia. You may or may not know her as - "

"Fury," Superman said. "We first met her as Aresia. You're from her homeland?"

"Yes. It might interest you to know that the armor, bracelets, and tiara she wears were part of a set of religious artifacts she stole from our temple. This was all she left behind," Diana replied, holding up the lariat.

"She didn't say anything about that," Superman said. "I assume she told you our personal information. I don't know how she found out who I was, but that's something else I'll have to discuss with her."

"We haven't spoken to her," Audrey said. "We didn't even know where she was until we saw her on the television set."

Superman knitted his brow. "Then how did you know the things you said?"

"I can answer those questions, but not until Audrey leaves the room."

Audrey gasped. "Diana"  
He folded his arms. "Not a chance. I'm not leaving either of you out of my sight. And if you don't keep talking, I'll assume this is some kind of elaborate blackmail scheme."

Diana hesitated. She'd kept her silence with Audrey, because she hadn't wanted to introduce awkwardness into their relationship by confessing she was in love with her. She _could_ leave that part out now, however. It was irrelevant to the matter at hand, after all. The only other problem was that Audrey would think she was insane.

She took a deep breath. "I'm not from this world," she said.

Audrey looked at her blankly. "Man's World isn't literally a different world, Diana."

"In my world," Diana went on, "I was a member of the Justice League." THAT quieted Audrey. "I took the armor, the bracelets, the tiara, AND the lariat, and I left Themiscyra. I came to Man's World just in time for the invasion of the White Martians - "

"Hold on a second here," Superman said. "You're expecting me to believe you're from another dimension?"

Diana had no idea how much this world had in common with her own, but she had to hope. "Yes. Like the Justice Lords."

Superman paused. "Anything you say, you could have learned it from Fury."

"How _did_ she learn about you, then? And Wally? Bruce? That time you nearly took a dive in a deathmatch in order to stop Mongul from destroying - "

"All right, all right!" Superman interrupted her. "Mind control. Somehow you extracted the information from a League member without their knowledge."

She held up the lariat. "When tied around any person, even myself, this has the power to compel them to tell the truth. You mean that kind of mind control?" She tossed it to him. "Bind me with it. Ask me anything."

"Diana?" Audrey asked softly. "What is going on?"

Superman looked at her suspiciously. "You sound more crazy than anything else, Princess."

"Yes, but at least this princess isn't dragging you to a planet light-years away because she wants you to be her husband," Diana replied. "I think you need to know how I came by this information, don't you?"

He frowned and draped the lariat over her form, so that it settled around her elbows.

"Audrey, tighten it," Diana said. "He's a man, he won't be able to."

"Diana . . ."

"Just do it, Audrey. I'm truly sorry, but I'll explain everything."

Looking lost, Audrey went to her and tightened the knot so that it fit snugly around her body. Diana stared at Superman. It felt strange having it around her. She felt odd. "Ask me something," she said.

"All right. What is it you're afraid to tell your friend here?" he asked.

Diana stiffened. "What?" she managed to ask, feeling a compulsion stronger than even herself sweep through her.

"I have only your word this lariat does what you say it does," he said. "So tell me something you don't want to say."

"You - in, in my world - Audrey and I are - lovers," Diana growled, unable to fight the magic.

Audrey's eyes could not have grown any wider if she tried.

Superman also appeared startled. "But not in this world?"

Diana laughed bitterly. "No, to my sorrow. Here Diana - is in love with Aresia. Much to my chagrin."

"Diana? I thought your name was Diana."

"It is. I was referring to the Diana whose body I'm trapped in." She forced herself to stop fighting, seeing how futile it was.

"And everything you've told me so far is true?"

"Yes!" she said emphatically.

He studied her face. "You said you were chagrined to find out you were Aresia's lover. Was it just because you loved someone other than Audrey, or is there something else?"

By now Audrey had sat down, and Diana regretted causing her such a shock. "It's worse," she said. "Back home Aresia employed the services of Star Sapphire and Tsukuri to help her steal the chemicals she needed to create a lethal virus that only affected men."

"She WHAT?" Audrey asked, this latest revelation rousing her.

Superman seemed to doubt her as well. "That's a pretty wild tale," he said.

"Oh? So she hasn't been more comfortable around Shayera than the rest of you?"

"Well . . . she's never seen a man before. She's understandably more relazed with Hawkgirl."

"Superman, she's not even a born Amazon! She was washed ashore after pirates sank the ship her family was on. Which, by the way, is why she hates men so. Certainly more than most Amazons. We're not taught to hate men. We're just meant to be a counter to their warlike ways."

"Look, even if this lasso really HAS powers - and I'm not convinced you haven't choreographed this entire thing - "

"Then you put it on."

He smiled. "Then you spring the trap, right?"

"Are you really afraid of a little rope?"

"I seem to recall a Scandinavian myth where a giant wolf was bound with a silken thread," he replied.

"Then bring me to Aresia, and bind HER with it," Diana said, exasperated.

"Why don't you just ask her?" Audrey finally asked. "Ask Aresia if she took the armor without permission. I - frankly I don't know what to think about the things Diana has said, but we are official representatives of Themiscyra, and we are on a mission, sent by Queen Hippolyta herself."

"I'll do better than that," he said after a moment. "I'm bringing you both to the Watchtower myself. I certainly can't leave you two alone, not with the information you've obtained."

Diana sighed. He didn't believe her, and Audrey thought she was insane. At least they'd be taken to Aresia. The woman had a short temper, and she might slip up.

"Although you may want to confess now," he added. "The Martian Manhunter - "

"J'onn reads minds. I know. Sorry, I'm immune."

Superman made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a bat-grunt.

* * *

"I realize I haven't been a member for long, but is the secrecy really necessary?"

Diana heard Aresia's voice in the corridor, and she instinctively tensed, her body expecting an attack. Audrey, who had not spoken a word since they were transported to the Watchtower, stared at her.

Aresia entered the room, followed closely behind by Hawkgirl, and froze when she saw Diana and Audrey.

It was strange, seeing Aresia's face on a body that could have been Diana's own, clad in the familiar armor with its red and gold bodice. It was more than strange. It was blasphemous.

"Hello, Aresia," Diana said coldly.

"Diana?" Aresia asked, stunned. "Audrey? How did you - "

"Mother was a little upset when you took off with those without asking first," Diana interrupted, pointing at her armor.

"Hippolyta would have said no," Aresia pointed out.

"Maybe she had a good reason," Diana retorted, startling the other Amazon.

"You know these people?" J'onn asked. He had confirmed for Superman that Diana's mind could not be probed. A quick read of Audrey's mind had provided further evidence that their story, or at least their story about Aresia stealing the armor, was true. Diana didn't positively know if he also uncovered Audrey's royal background. If he'd seen memories of her life as the princess of Kasnia, and she had to assume he had, he had not spoken of it.

Aresia nodded. "Diana's mother is the Queen of the Amazons. And she was - adopted by my people a few years ago," she added, gesturing toward Audrey.

"I wasn't the first Amazon to wash ashore on Themiscyra's beaches, Aresia," Audrey reminded her.

Diana could instantly tell from the other two Amazons' body language that they didn't like each other. She wondered if this world's Diana had ever noticed.

"And is it true what they've said?" Green Lantern asked. Only Batman and the Flash weren't there. "That the armor and bracelets you wear weren't yours?"

Aresia scowled at him. "Their potential was being wasted," she said. "I believed they could be put to better use creating peace in Man's World."

"Some Amazons thought you did it so you could prove yourself worthy of me," Diana replied.

"They said that?" Aresia asked, surprised. Then her cheeks turned red. "I'm sorry I left without telling you," she said. "I didn't want to force you to choose between me and your mother."

"You needn't have worried," Diana said. "I'm sure it would have been an easy choice."

Aresia smiled at her, but it was a trifle uncertain. Diana's tone had obviously confused her.

Superman sighed. "Perhaps you should return with them to Themiscyra, Fury. We can't allow you to simply remain here if you've violated Amazon laws."

Diana held out something she'd hid behind her back. "At least you mitigated your theft by leaving this. Why, Aresia?" she asked, dangling the lasso from her hand.

"I - I thought I heard something," Aresia said. "I fled before I could take the lariat."

"Perhaps - perhaps you don't need to return with us."

"Diana?" Audrey asked, surprised.

"Allow yourself to be bound," Diana continued, ignoring Audrey. "Let me ask you a few questions. If I can determine you acted with complete sincerity and wanted only to further the goals of peace, I'd be willing to tell Mother that you should be allowed to remain here. I could even argue it would be a fitting punishment that you be banned from Themiscyra for a certain amount of time."

Aresia hesitated. "But I wouldn't be with you then."

"Maybe - if you agree, I can stay too. Audrey can return by herself."

None of the other Leaguers spoke. Diana had convinced them to allow her to handle Aresia herself. If any of them had brought up Diana's allegations prior to Aresia being bound in the lasso, they might have had a fight on their hands.

Aresia's worries melted. "Then I'll do it," she said. "And then we can be together without your mother's disapproval."

Diana handed the lariat to Audrey. "Tighten it round her body," she said.

Audrey silently complied, but as she came back, her task done, she stopped. Then she stood on her tiptoes and whispered into Diana's ear.

"I hope you are right."

Diana stared at her as she moved aside. Then she smiled and went over to Aresia. Taking hold of the rope, she looked into Aresia's eyes. "If you could anything you wanted to the men of this world," she asked, "what would you do?"

The shock was clearly written on her face. Then her face almost turned purple with rage. "I would kill them all," she snarled.

Diana's smile turned cold. Anger really did make you weak.

* * *

"So, you're one of us back where you come from?" Flash asked.

Diana nodded.

"Am I - "

"From what I can tell, you're exactly the same."

"And you and I, are we - "

"Not a chance, Wally."

He sighed. "Damn. Second Amazon to shoot me down in a week."

"We're not used to being around men. You intimidate us."

Flash brightened. "Yeah! And I'm just the guy to take the edge off those nerves - hey wait, _you're_ used to being around men."

But she was already walking away.

"Is he really like that back home?" Hawkgirl asked.

She sighed. "Yes, he is."

"There must be a world somewhere that we don't have to listen to his chatter," Shayera joked fondly.

Diana stopped smiling. "I've seen two," she said. "Trust me, we're all better off with him."

"I was just kidding," Hawkgirl replied, troubled by the response. "How many worlds have you seen, anyway?"

"This is the fourth, including my own."

"Do you think there will be more?"

"I don't know," Diana sighed. "All I care about is returning to mine."

"Can I have a minute with our surprise guest?"

Both women turned and found Superman was standing behind them. "Of course," Hawkgirl said, leaving.

"I'm sorry I doubted you," Superman said.  
"There's no proof that I'm an interdimensional traveler," Diana admitted. "I could just be crazy."

"Crazy, and having the key to our secrets," Superman replied skeptically. "Anyway, you were right about Fury. We should have been more careful admitting her into our ranks. But she was so instrumental in our defeat of the Injustice League - her powers were too great to ignore. Ironically, that was the key to stopping her, though."

"Oh?" Diana asked.

"Star Sapphire was the only member of the Injustice League to escape," he said. "At the time we chalked it up to a rookie mistake, especially since she'd singlehandedly defeated both Copperhead and Cheetah. When you mentioned her name earlier, however, I wondered if maybe the escape wasn't an accident. That led me to agree when you asked to be allowed to speak to Fury without interference."

Diana nodded. "I'm glad you did. She didn't deserve to wear those things."

"Unlike you."

He handed her the Amazonian armors, neatly piled. "Maybe you'd be willing to take her place."

Diana grimaced. "I'm the wrong person to ask. I'm just borrowing this body. At any point the real Diana will resurface, and I'll be gone. She's the one you need to ask, and she'll be grieving for Aresia and her hatred. She can't go on loving her, not after this revelation."

"I hope you'll stay for now," he said. "I realize that technically Fury hasn't broken any Earth laws, and that Themiscyra has a better claim on her than we do. And you have to bring these back to your homeland. But perhaps if you stayed until you 'jumped', we could help her?"

Diana shook her head, but she smiled doing it. "She'll do better with her fellow Amazons and her mother," she replied. "But I believe she's inside me somewhere seeing all this, and she'll remember what good people you all are. I bet you'll have your Wonder Woman one of these days yet."

He raised an eyebrow. "Wonder Woman?"

She looked embarrassed. "I was a bit naive when I first arrived."

Superman grew serious again. "You know, my alter-ego is sitting on one hell of a story here."

"Sorry about that."

"I mean, presumed dead Kasnian princess living on magical isle for past five years with mythical race of woman warriors? It sounds like a tabloid headline."

Diana frowned. "J'onn told you."

"I'm sure he knows, but I figured it out relatively quickly. It was a big story at the Planet for a few days when she was lost at sea. We do so love our tragic princesses in America. The face, the name, the voice - I put it together. I _am_ a reporter, remember."

"She doesn't want that life back," Diana said. "More than once, when we were looking for Aresia, I suggested going to Kasnia and using their resources. She was adamant, even if it meant seeing her father again."

"I wasn't going to say anything," he told her. "I just wanted you to know. Her secret's safe with us."

"Good," Diana breathed. She looked at the bundle of armor. "You know, rather than carrying those around, I'm going to put them where they belong."

"I bet," Superman said.

* * *

She studied herself in the mirror. She looked better in it than Aresia had. And frankly, she noted, admiring her beauty, it looked better on her.

"That's quite a backside you're showing off. You could break millions of hearts if you stayed."

Diana jumped a little as Audrey appeared just behind her. "But I guess you already knew that," Audrey continued.

"Hi," Diana said awkwardly. "Superman knows who you are, but he won't tell anyone."

"I know, he told me," Audrey sighed. "So where is my Diana?"

"I didn't want to do this to her," Diana said. "I'm sure she's as fond of submission as I am. Honestly I don't know. Buried somewhere inside by magic, I guess."

Audrey nodded. "You shouldn't be sorry," she replied. "My Diana was so infatuated with Aresia. It was almost sickening. Your mother and I were in total agreement on that. That was one reason why she sent me along. The queen knew I'd try to stop you if you'd done something stupid like tried to remain here with her."

"How in Hades did she become interested in Aresia anyway?"

"I think it was physical," Audrey said. "They challenged each other so. At some point the competition must have sparked something - lustful."

"I know you'll help her get over it when I'm gone," Diana said.

"Oh, yes," Audrey replied. "It depends on how much she'll let me help her."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well . . . you see, darling, I've loved her since even before she began mooning over Aresia," Audrey admitted. "Believe me, as much as you want to touch me, I want to touch you."

Diana blushed. "I thought you just disliked Aresia."

"Oh, I do. But there was jealousy as well. I - never spoke about it, because I'm not even a real Amazon. Even with the skills I have learned, I am the weakest among you. Your mother would have disapproved of me as much as she does of Aresia," Audrey said sadly.

"Audrey," Diana said, "if my double knows you as well as you think, I don't know how she couldn't love you. Maybe with Aresia on the way out and your feelings in the open, she'll return your feelings. And - if she comes to Man's World as I did, then you won't have to deal with Hippolyta, will you?"

Audrey smiled after a moment. "No, we wouldn't." Then she grew sad again. "You love Audrey, and I love Diana. But we can't kiss, because I am not YOUR Audrey, just as you are not MY Diana. A shame, isn't it?"

Diana nodded. "It is. But maybe . . . just one kiss? Since we've been such good girls and waited so long?"

"Me? A good girl? You must be mistaken."

"Then do something naughty," Diana murmured.

Audrey's smile returned as she approached. She reached up, rested her hand on Diana's shoulder, and kissed her.

* * *

Diana blinked and looked around. It only took her a moment this time to realize she wasn't where she'd been a second before.

"I hoped we could remain here, hidden," Queen Hippolyta said at the dais. Diana found herself sitting close by. They were evidently in the amphitheater on Themiscyra, and once again she was clad in traditional Amazonian garb. Above them in the seats appeared to be virtually the entire Amazon nation. On the other side of her mother sat Artemis, her trusted lieutenant. And next to Diana was . . .

Aresia?

She stared at Aresia for a moment, and the blonde woman looked back. "What?" she mouthed.

If she was in love with Aresia here too, Diana was going to be ill.

"I hoped Man's World might even learn to make peace on their own," Hippolyta went on. "But I received a message in a dream from our patroness Athena in the night, and she provided me with a vision. He who has ruled Man's World for so long, is close to finding us. His powers, science so great it is no different from magic, will sniff us out before the year is over."

The Amazons murmured in astonishment and worry until Hippolyta unveiled something she'd kept hidden. "This," she said, gesturing to a board Diana could not see, "is a rendering of the man who could destroy us. The man who has forced me to send members of our people to Man's World for the first time in centuries. This," she said, "is Vandal Savage."

Diana closed her eyes and groaned silently. "Oh, Hera," she thought.

To be continued in Part Three, "The Furious Time"


	7. The Furious Time, Chapter One

Amazon Stories - The Furious Time

Disclaimers - See Part One

Chapter One

Diana sat behind her mother and listened grimly as Hippolyta described events that had evidently taken place over the years, even decades. She silently thanked Hera that at least Circe's accursed spell kept sending her to worlds that were somewhat familiar, if oddly relevant to her own life. Three worlds, and already Audrey, Savage, and Aresia had all appeared twice. Perhaps the magic was keying into her memories, or her emotions.

At any rate, the Man's World depicted by her mother sounded quite like Diana's first experience with traveling through the space-time barrier. Evidently her world was not the only one where Vandal Savage took over the Third Reich, and then the world. She wondered if here, too, he won by sending himself technology from the future.

She also wondered how the Justice League factored into this. In her world they'd escaped the effects of Savage's tampering with time through sheer chance. Perhaps here they hadn't been so lucky. Or perhaps that date still lay ahead.

"I have made up my mind," her mother proclaimed, waking Diana from her thoughts. "I have only said this to you, so that you all may understand the grave danger Themiscyra faces today. Athena commands it. She says we have stayed here too long. Peace will not wait for us. We must make it ourselves."

"I have decided to send a team of Amazons to explore this new, strange world we must face," she continued. "Perhaps they can even determine how close the danger is. I have selected three - a small number, I admit, but secrecy is paramount at this point, and I have confidence in their abilities. Diana, Artemis, Aresia - please step forward."

Diana almost didn't get up with the others, her surprise at her mother selecting Aresia was so great. Even before Aresia vanished from Themiscyra, she'd been known for her hot temper. She stood, however. Evidently her mother had already spoken of this to her, and she tried to remain impassive.

Hippolyta cast a fond glance in her direction. "I'm entrusting our fates into your hands, Amazons," she said quietly. "You will see horrors out there - horrors inflicted by the cruel tyrannies of this aptly-named Savage. But you must not show yourselves. Once you have returned, once we know the danger, then we can save more than just one or two lives. Do you understand me?"

Artemis only nodded while Aresia smiled. "Of course, Queen Hippolyta," she said.

"You're sure we'll be enough?" Diana murmured.

"With the armor, you will be," Hippolyta assured her. "I was surprised when Artemis informed me that the decision had been made for you to wear it. Not that I doubt you, Diana, but I thought Artemis would be chosen due to her experience."

Diana had no idea how to respond, but Artemis saved her. "She has great potential, Hippolyta," she said quietly. "Besides, haven't I always taken care of myself, even without gifts from the gods?"

"True enough," Hippolyta admitted. She turned away. "Princess Diana has accepted the mantle of the Eagle Battle Armor. With this and the other artifacts forged by the gods themselves, they shall be able to defeat any surprise that comes," she announced.

If her mother only knew.

* * *

Three hours later, Diana remained uneasy as their craft made its way toward Athens. Unlike the dimension she'd visited last, Audrey was not a resident of Themiscyra. Which meant that Audrey was somewhere out in that hellish world Savage had created. 

"You seem troubled, Diana," Aresia said from behind.

Diana's shoulders tensed. Even Hippolyta had fallen for Aresia's wiles here. "Shouldn't I be? Shouldn't you? This is Man's World we're coming to, after all."

"Yes, but it doesn't have the same impact for me. I was born there, after all."

"A world full of men," Diana prompted her. "Like the pirates that caused you to become an Amazon."

But Aresia only shrugged. "And like the captain without whose sacrifice I would have died. Not all men are bad. You've always agreed with me on that. Why the sudden change?"

Diana didn't turn to face her, for fear of showing the incredulous look on her face. Aresia claimed not to hate the opposite gender?

But then, Aresia had never been told about the ship's captain in her world. She'd grown up blaming men for her family's death. In fact, her mother had rued not telling her the truth. She'd said perhaps things would have been different.

Maybe she'd been right.

At that point Diana reminded herself that this was an entirely new world, one where everyone, even Aresia, was allowed to make different choices. The women whose bodies she'd leapt into were perfect indicators of that. She resolved to treat Aresia as the Amazon she'd wanted the blonde to be.

"I'm sorry," Diana replied, facing her at last. "I guess this Savage character has reminded me of all the evils men are capable of."

Aresia nodded. "I don't even want to think about all the lives he's taken."

Diana was agreeing with her when a nasty thought occurred to her. Why should she assume that Audrey was in fact alive? Wouldn't the Nazis have eliminated the royal family once Kasnia was in their possession? Audrey wasn't even alive in the 1940s, but her parents certainly were.

A block of ice settled in her stomach as she realized how likely the possibility was. "You're right," she said weakly. "I don't want to think about it either." Then she headed for the ship's controls.

For all of Themiscyra's isolation, science and innovation had always been intermingled with divine magic. Technology was far from alien to the Amazons. One example was this ship, which was small enough that it was unlikely to be detected, but which had been programmed to take them to naval coordinates along the Greek shore. A safe plan, if you didn't know what you were getting yourself into.

But it was also fast enough to take them a lot farther without consuming too long a time. And Diana had information the others didn't. Hera, at least she hoped she did. If they arrived in Gotham and there was no Bruce Wayne-led resistance movement, they'd have a harder time than before. Even that would be acceptable, however, if the time travel device the League had employed in her universe was still there.

It was a fool's errand to fight Savage's empire. The only real solution was to do as the League did - travel back in time, and stop Savage's advance before it got started.

Surreptitiously she altered the coordinates and hoped Artemis wouldn't notice until it was too late. "Please, Aphrodite, give me that," she whispered. "Let me save her."

* * *

"Well, this is just great," Artemis growled. "Ares himself couldn't have interfered better than this. I'd almost guess this IS his handiwork." 

"Maybe another god was responsible," Diana suggested. "Maybe, like the vision, Athena is telling us something."

"Telling us what? Travel thousands of miles farther than intended?" Artemis retorted. "Getting to Greece now will take almost as long as getting to wherever in Hades THIS is!" she said, stabbing a finger at the display.

"Why don't we just head for the nearest land?" Aresia asked. "It's not like we had a concrete reason going to Greece. It's just what we were familiar with."

"I say we keep going," Diana said. "It took us hours to notice we weren't even traveling in the same direction any more. Maybe the gods _want_ us to go this way."

The reason they hadn't noticed had more to due with Diana suggesting they go in the cabin to discuss strategy.

Artemis fumed silently. "Very well," she said. "We continue west. And Hera help us, I pray we don't find ourselves entering a trap."

* * *

"It's amazing," Aresia whispered. "I remember cities in my childhood, but nothing like this!" 

Diana shrugged. It was brighter and cleaner than the Gotham she knew. But the Gotham she knew didn't have Vandal Savage's face everywhere, either. "Men always have to make things bigger and taller," she said. "I'm not convinced the Amazons can fight against something this size, however."

"The people are oppressed," Artemis pointed out. "Topple the head, and they may rise up."

"Start a war to promote peace," Aresia said. "Ironic."

"This is the peace of the grave," Diana replied. "Not what the Amazons believe in."

Artemis sighed. "Be that as it may, we can't blend in dressed like this."

"Maybe we shouldn't bother," Diana said. The resistance had appeared once the fighting started, she remembered.

"Now is not the time to be impulsive, Princess," Artemis hissed. "Maybe we were sent to this city by the gods and maybe we weren't, but they don't protect the foolhardy!"

Diana ignored her. They had to get to that time machine, and that was going to get their attention anyway. "Excuse me?" she asked, approaching a man in uniform.

He looked at her attire and stared at her, unsure of whether to gawk at her looks or question her.

"Is it true the Leader is a megalomaniacal fool with a tendency to lose in the final reel?" she continued.

The officer frowned at her. "Sounds like somebody went off their meds today," he said.

"Somebody's going to need medication, all right," she agreed. "Codeine, perhaps."

Then she grabbed him and threw him twenty feet away.

Artemis slapped her forehead. "All that training," she muttered.

The man rolled on the ground in obvious pain, but he was able to get his radio out. "Disturbance," he croaked. "Every - available - man!"

Diana cracked her knuckles. "Let's get this over with."

To be continued . . .


	8. The Furious Time, Chapter Two

Amazon Stories - The Furious Time

Chapter Two

"That was - impressive," Batman said as he led them through the tunnel. "I've never seen someone rip an armored personnel carrier in half with her bare hands before."

"You should see me with a helicopter," Diana murmured beside him, feeling a pang as she was reminded of her first meeting with Audrey.

Behind them, Aresia glanced at Artemis. "Is it just me, or has the armor from the temple changed Diana?" she whispered. "Although she certainly seems to have adjusted to them quickly. I wouldn't have imagined she could display such feats of strength."

Artemis scowled. "There is definitely something different about her. I'd almost think the armor was a gift from Ares, not Athena."

"Still, it's a good thing I showed up," Batman told Diana. "We've noticed an increase in troop levels in Gotham recently. If you'd stayed there much longer, you would have needed to start tossing tanks around as well."

The oddest things reminded her of Audrey, and she sighed. "I too am glad we met. We know so little of the outside world."

"I'm surprised your society has escaped Savage's attention until now," he replied. "Especially with your - abilities."

"The magic that grants us some of our powers also keeps our home hidden," she said.

His grunt was the most familiar thing she'd heard since she arrived. "I take it you don't put much stock in magic."

"This world doesn't even put much stock in hope any longer," he replied. "This resistance movement is one of the only ones left."

"Fortunate for us that we came here, then," Diana said.

Artemis' frown only deepened.

"What brought you here, anyway?" he asked as they found themselves in what was evidently their base, filled with resistance fighters and custom-built computers.

"That magic thing you don't like very much," Diana replied. Which, considering it was magic that had put her mind in her double's body, was true.

"Our queen received a vision from the gods," Artemis informed him.

"Mmm-hmm," he said noncommittally.

"Two, actually," Diana interjected. "Well, the queen just got the one. I got the other."

"Would you excuse us for a moment?" Artemis asked Batman before Diana could continue. She took Diana by the arm and pulled her aside, leaving Aresia behind.

"So," Aresia said after a moment, "been doing this long?"

"The government executed my parents when I was a child," h e said gravely. "I've been driven by that ever since."

"Really?" she asked. "My parents drowned when our ship was sunk by a military vessel." She gave him a good look. "Guess we have something in common," she added with a wink.

He blinked.

"TWO visions?" Artemis was hissing meanwhile. "TWO! What is wrong with you? Queen Hippolyta - "

"My mother didn't know," Diana said truthfully. "There's a lot she doesn't know, actually. A lot you and Aresia don't know either. Which is why I changed the ship's coordinates earlier."

Artemis gave her a wrath-filled look. "I knew it was you," she said. "But how did you know we would find these warriors here? You've never left the island!"

"My mind has," Diana said. "I was shown all of this by Gaia."

"Earth," Artemis replied skeptically. "There are no records of Gaia, or any other Titan, caring a whit about the Amazon nation."

"Gaia is the mother of Kronos, god of time," Diana reminded her. "With Kronos supposedly in Tartarus, I expect Gaia is looking out after his interests yet."

"What does time have to do with this?"

"Savage is manipulating the past in order to warp the present," Diana said. "He's sending information and technology into the past with a machine located right here in Gotham. And it's this technology that helped the Germans take over the world. The past is supposed to be immutable, Artemis. The fabric of time can't take such blatant interference. If Vandal Savage is allowed to continue like this, not only will he perpetuate sixty years of evil, but he could also destroy the world!"

Artemis digested this silently. "This vision, if there was one, has changed you, Diana? You seem much - older."

Diana sighed. "I have seen - things you wouldn't believe, Artemis. And I will explain everything in full detail when this is over. But for now you have to trust me - we can save more than Themiscyra if we play this right. We can save SO many lives. And if you want proof - " She looked past Artemis at Batman. "You say there have been increased numbers of soldiers?" she asked.

Batman nodded. "We believe Savage is trying to wipe us out once and for all."

"Well, you're half-right," Diana told him. "They're here because of you, but they're not here to kill you. They're here to stop you from interfering with their plan."

"Plan?"

"Vandal Savage has built a machine that permits him to travel backwards in time," she said. "He's going to use it to perpetuate the past." She looked around. "You," she said, pointing at a young red-headed woman leaning against a taller man. "Get me a grid of the city on your computers?"

"Me?" Barbara Gordon asked.

"You look like someone who knows their way around these machines," Diana said knowingly, having learned not long after Bruce confirmed his secret identity that Miss Gordon was the "oracle" who was always such a fount of information.

Barbara nodded and went over to the main computer, calling up the display while everyone else, especially Artemis and Aresia, looked on curiously.

"There," Diana said, pointing at a location on the map. "That's where most of the soldiers are currently concentrated. It's in that building that the time machine is located."

Batman nodded thoughtfully. "We HAVE noticed a lot of activity there. I assumed they were storing some kind of weapon there."

"It IS a weapon," Diana said. "With that device, Savage can send anything he wants to anyone in the past. Computers, weapons, schematics - "

"And he's going to send them to his grandfather," Batman instantly realized. "That _would_ explain how Germany acquired such technological superiority without warning. It's paradoxical, and yet it makes sense."

"What does?" Barbara's friend asked, mystified.

"If we can stop him, Grayson," Batman said quietly, "then we could create a new world, the world that should have existed without Savage's interference. A world where the Nazis might have lost . . ."

"But - if that happens, we wouldn't exist," Barbara pointed out.

"But our parents would still be alive," Dick whispered.

"It's a gamble - IF it's true," Batman said, his paranoia reasserting itself as he glared at the Amazons. "But no matter what Savage is doing at that building, it can't be good. We need to launch a preemptive assault."

"How soon?" Diana asked.

"As soon as we need to be," he said. He leaned over. "Your - friend. Aresia? Is she always like this?"

Diana looked at him. "Like what?"

" . . . Friendly."

She glanced at Aresia, who was gazing openly at Batman. "Um," she said, for once at a loss for words. "I guess she's been lonely."

* * *

"Well, I've got good news, and I've got bad news," Barbara told them.

"Bad news first," Batman said in the tone of a man used to hearing it.

"According to their records, Savage has already used the machine to send the items back in time," she explained.

"Then what's the good news?" Diana asked, already anticipating it.

"It looks like this was only the last in a line of shipments."

"And that's good how exactly?" Artemis asked.

"Well, apparently Savage has been using the machine for his own self-interest as well as the glory of Nazi Germany," Barbara explained. "He's been laying the groundwork for his grandfather's rise to power with a series of shipments to 1942 and 1943. This last shipment, however, was sent back to the summer of 1944. July 2nd, to be precise."

"Two days before the invasion of America," Batman said.

"Exactly. Savage obviously helped make that possible. So what if we send something back to make it IM-possible?"

"Send us," Diana said.

"Wait a minute," Batman said.

"Batman, I need you and your people to hold them off as long as possible," Diana told him, gesturing in the direction they'd come. They'd smashed through the building's defenses thanks to the work of three women with super-strength and speed, but the enemy was regrouping and they'd be assaulting the resistance positions any minute. "Otherwise, who knows what they'll send after us? They need their leader to command them - and we need you to destroy the machine, if you have to."

"If we do that, you're not coming back," he pointed out.

"If we succeed, we won't be coming back anyway," she said.

He nodded. "All right then," he said. "Gordon, can you activate this thing?"

"I can try," she told him. "But I don't know how to change the arrival date yet."

"Forget it," Diana said. "The closer to the invasion date we can create problems, the harder it will be for them to launch their armies on schedule."

"Diana, this is insane!" Artemis interrupted. "Do you really think some machine can send us back in time!"

She smiled. "I know it can."

The room became much brighter as a large glowing sphere appeared in the center of the machine.

As Diana passed Batman, she stopped. "Batman," she said so that only the two could hear her, "have you heard of a nation in the Balkans known as Kasnia?"

"It's part of the Yugoslavia District now," he replied. "Closer to your neck of the woods than mine. Why?"

"Do you - do you have any idea what happened to its royal family after the War?" she asked.

He looked strangely at her. "I can't say for sure, but virtually all of the heads of state in Europe were executed after the war. Savage was consolidating his power, and he didn't want any rebellions in their name. So he took a page from the Communists' book. Why do you want to know?"

Her smile was bitter. "You're not the only one being driven by the deaths of loved ones," she said before turning and flying directly into the heart of the light.

"Princess Diana, wait!" Artemis called before she growled in frustration and followed after her.

Aresia said nothing. She only blew a startled Batman a kiss before disappearing into the past.

* * *

"I don't suppose 'Gaia' showed you what comes next?" Artemis asked sarcastically.

Diana pushed the hair out of her face. "Those men are alive because of us. Can't you be a little less cranky?"

"I'm sorry," Artemis said. "It's just that we've exceeded the queen's orders so."

"We're in a position to stop the Nazi invasion of America, and save the Americans' beachhead in Normandy," Diana said. "More importantly, we could protect Themiscyra from an enemy who doesn't even have to exist. Why restrict ourselves to our original orders when we could save the lives of our fellow Amazons?"

Artemis nodded. "You ARE older. You're going to explain that, right?"

Diana's cheeks reddened. "Yes, Artemis." Artemis had taught her virtually everything she knew about fighting skills, and it shamed her to keep things from her now. But it wouldn't do to confuse matters. "And I do know what comes next . . . we're going to have to split up," she sighed.

"That doesn't sound like a great idea, Diana," Aresia said with good reason.

"I'm going to take to the air," Diana replied. "I'm the only one who can fly, and those machines above our heads can destroy the Allied forces as easily as the machines on the ground. How do you propose to follow me?"

"Then we'll continue the fight on the ground," Artemis answered.

Diana frowned. Instead of answering, she took a moment to think back to when the Justice League had been in the exact same situation. According to Superman's account after they returned to the present, he and Hawkgirl had encountered the Blackhawks while fighting off the German air machines, while Green Lantern had discovered the invasion fleet while assisting Easy Company with a mission to destroy a secret runway. Diana, of course, had saved both Steve Trevor and the Nazi message decoder.

"Go that way," Diana said, pointing in the direction she and J'onn had gone. Hopefully they'd encounter Trevor just as he did. With the decoder, the Allied armies would have proof of the Nazis' plan. "Please, just do it," she said, anticipating Artemis' objection. "The armor gives me an advantage, even on my own. The two of you will do fine together."

Artemis sighed. "You and I will talk when this is finished," she said.

If this worked, Diana thought, this was never going to happen anyway.

As they left, Diana took off into the skies. Hawkgirl wasn't here this time, but she had some other birds to fly with.

To be continued . . .


	9. The Furious Time, Chapter Three

Amazon Stories - The Furious Time

Chapter Three

Enemy tracers to her left made Diana turn around, and her eyes widened. The Nazi jet fighter was bearing directly down upon her. Its guns blazed. She was able to bring up her arms just in time, allowing her bracelets to take the heat, but she was defending herself against so many shots a second that she had time to do little else except fly backwards and away from the plane pursuing her. Soon, however, he was close enough that she could actually see the pilot's face.

She could even see the brief look of shock before his plane was turned by enemy fire into a flaming wreck, the heat shoving Diana backwards. Diana looked up and saw one of the Blackhawk planes flying away before she could get a look at which one. Knowing she was faster than the Allied fighters, though, she followed after it. "Thanks!" she called out to the pilot inside.

A young blonde woman smiled and waved back before banking and veering off.

Diana stared after it. A woman being allowed to fly in the war? That might explain why Blackhawk  
hadn't minded when she told him she'd be joining the air assault on Savage's invasion force.

She shrugged and, spotting yet another of the massive cargo planes Savage was using to transport men and armored vehicles to America by air, headed directly for it, fully extending herself as she led with both fists. The shots fired by the aircraft guns, those she didn't evade, were easily blocked by her bracelets, and she made thunderous contact with one of the plane's wings. Five seconds later she punched through the other side. She was without a scratch, but the plane's flight was now much more precarious thanks to the gaping hole in one wing.

Diana smiled. Or maybe Blackhawk had accepted her help after he'd seen her do similar things to  
other Nazi aircraft the day before.

At any rate, it appeared the battle was unfolding much as it had in her universe. After meeting the  
Blackhawks, Diana had raced across the Atlantic Ocean to warn the Americans that Savage was intending to win the war outright by bypassing England and launching his invasion at the United States. At first they didn't believe her, and Blackhawk's radio transmission from England confirming the aid the new "Wonder Woman" had given his unit was the only thing that stopped the army brass from labeling her a threat. Fortunately word later arrived from Steve Trevor, safe in England with the Nazi decoder device, confirming her story. The Americans had supplemented their coastal batteries with their strongest battleships in the Atlantic, and it was those ships whose guns were dismantling the Nazi planes from the front while the Blackhawks finished them off from the rear.

There had been no rest for Diana, who had immediately left America once they were convinced that the approaching air fleet existed. She had flanked the Germans in coordination with the Blackhawks and slowed their progress, giving the Americans even more time to pound the airships with their ships' cannons.

At least she didn't have to worry about saving anyone from Vandal Savage's ship, like the last time when Green Lantern had snuck aboard and confronted Savage on the bridge. Aresia and Artemis were undoubtedly safe with Trevor. Diana chuckled. This Steve Trevor would have someone else to call "angel" in the future.

One of the Blackhawk planes flew alongside her. He pounded his fist on the cockpit glass.

Curious, Diana flew closer and grabbed onto the plane with both arms, allowing it to carry her along. "What!" she shouted.

Pressing her ear to the glass, she could just barely hear him. "One of your friends is missing!" he  
told her.

She stared at him, shocked.

"They were split up! One of them is still in France!"

Diana looked away. The Fates couldn't have. There was no way Aresia or Artemis could have found herself with the exact same U.S Army company that John had joined when he was separated from Flash and Hawkgirl. It was too great a coincidence. She was probably somewhere in the French countryside.

There was an explosion on the Nazi flagship, and its nose slowly drifted downward.

"Hades," she breathed. "Oh well, I suppose I wanted one more crack at Savage anyway." She gave the pilot the thumbs-up sign and flew toward Savage's plane.

* * *

"Ah," Vandal Savage said, strangely calm considering his designs were crashing as surely as his  
airship. "Here's the woman I _really_ wanted to talk to. You're the one, the enemy of the glorious Third Reich."

"Artemis, are you all right?" Diana asked, ignoring him.

The Amazon grunted. "He's more experienced than he looks," she said, leaning against a console. Her midriff was almost completely bare where her bodice had been torn, and she had three angry red welts running across her navel, as if a creature of flame had run its fingers along her body. "And that infernal machine on his hand - it makes up for his lack of strength. He heals swiftly as well."

"I know," Diana sighed. "I trust you were winning anyway?"

"Of course!" Artemis assured her, grinning wryly.

For once, Savage stopped speaking without having to be told. Instead he charged forward, knowing he had little time left. He led with his fist, encased as it was in the futuristic glove that crackled with superhuman power.

Diana expertly turned her upper body, catching him by the elbow and shoulder so that the glove barely missed her skin. It still came close enough that she could feel the vibrations in her lungs. She pivoted and bent, hurling him through the air and into a bank of machines. "This airship is about to become a sunken ship, Artemis," she said. "We've got to - "

Savage roared. All attempts at maintaining his arrogant, aloof exterior vanished as he tore a panel from the wall and hurled it at the two Amazons. Diana pushed Artemis out of the way but caught the brunt on her back, and she was knocked to the floor.

"Impudent girls!" he spat at them, as his glove glowed more brightly. Something rippled out toward Diana as she rose to her feet. She raised her bracelets, but the electromagnetic pulse was too diffuse for her bracelets to absorb all the blast, and she screamed as she was thrown backwards.

"Now," Savage leered, turning on Artemis, "for the glory of Germany - "

"You - you dishonest piece of shit," Diana growled as she stood up.

Artemis stared at Diana. "Piece of what? You've spent too much time with those men," she said.

"Unlike you and Easy Company?" Diana asked, and Artemis' mouth fell open. "And you talk about Germany like that means something to you," she went on, turning to Savage, mindless of their plane's increasing descent. "The Nazis are going to be responsible for the near-destruction of their OWN people, along with the rest of Europe, all because of you stupid MEN and your stupid WAR! And you're just using this conflict so you can make yourself king, because this is your best chance to pull it off in _twenty-five thousand years_!"

Savage took a step back. "There's no way you could have known that," he whispered.

"I agree," Artemis said suspiciously.

"Then you know you can't kill me," he went on.

"I'm glad, actually," Diana told him, even though they'd run out of time for banter long ago. "It makes sending you to the bottom of the ocean all that much sweeter."

Then she used her speed, knowing there was no way he could match it. She drew her lariat, wrapped it around his body, and spun in place, not caring as his body smashed into anything in its way.

When she let go, there was a satisfying crash as Savage made a nice hole in the ceiling. Diana wiped her hands and turned to Artemis. "Can we go now?"

Artemis folded her arms. "No."

"No? NO? This plane is going to hit the water any second, and you're NOT LEAVING!"

"Not until you tell me who you are. Because you're not Diana."

Diana groaned and grabbed her head. "Can this please wait until we've reached land, Artemis?"

Artemis gave her the same kind of look she'd given Diana when the younger woman had tried to call an end to sparring practice after five hours straight.

Diana sighed. "I'm from another universe, okay? All of this happened to me in another world, albeit with a different cast of characters. I'm trapped in your Diana's body. It was Circe's doing. No, I don't know for how long. NOW can we leave?"

Artemis waited a moment before she held out her arms. "Why you couldn't have just told me sooner," she said.

Diana considered leaving her for a second.

* * *

"So you're A Diana. You're just not OUR Diana," Aresia said.

Diana nodded. "Basically."

"And all that about a vision from Gaia - " Artemis prompted her.

"I - lied," Diana admitted. Artemis could still make her feel ashamed, even at her age.

"Hmph. Well, that would explain how you knew I found myself accompanying Easy Company earlier. Good thing too, they led me right to Savage's secret runway. And you're obviously an Amazon, from that look on your face," Artemis said. "Nice to see my counterpart can set a better example for you too."

Diana sighed. "Yes, Artemis," she muttered. It was like having two mothers.

"So why haven't we returned to the present yet?" Aresia asked. "And will we remember any of this?"

"I don't know," Diana admitted. "My best guess would be to return to the place we arrived here at.  
As for our memories, I still remember what happened in my world. But we came here under different circumstances. I can't say."

"Oh," Aresia said. She looked across the room and sighed.

Diana followed her gaze. "Oh boy," she said. "You must have liked Steve very much."

The American agent was talking to a fellow American who had flown one of the Air Force planes  
alongside the Blackhawks. He spotted Aresia looking at him, and he grinned, waving at her.

"Yeah," Aresia mumbled.

Diana pulled Aresia over and hugged her. "I just want you to know how proud I am of you," she whispered in Aresia's ear.

Aresia hugged her back, although when she pulled away, she looked confused as well as pleased. "Thank you, Diana," she said. "I did it all for the Amazons. You gave me my life, you know."

"That doesn't mean you have to live your life on Themiscyra, though," Diana told her.

"What do you mean?"

"I'll explain in a second," Diana interrupted, spotting someone else. She left the other Amazons and walked over. "I never got to thank you," she said.

The blonde woman turned her head. "Hi!" she said brightly. "It was my pleasure. You were amazing out there."

"I didn't realize they allowed women into combat."

"Sorry, I seem to have beaten you to it," the other woman said, chuckling. "My name is Zinda, but  
I'm known as Lady Blackhawk."

"I'm Diana. Pleased to meet you. Listen, as fellow women and warriors, could I ask you for a  
second favor?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"My friends and I need to return to the French town we arrived at. I can fly, but they can't. Could  
you give us a lift after the party?" Diana asked.

"_After_ the party, sure," Lady Blackhawk said. "Another cold beer with the guys would be good first."

Diana thanked her and returned to the other Amazons. "She's going to fly us back to our arrival  
point."

"Fine, whatever. What were you going to say before?" Aresia asked.

"Well - we DO have a bit of an opportunity here. Technically, the three of us don't exist any longer. When we return to the present, we'll be going to a world we're not originally from."

"So?" Artemis asked.

"So what if Aresia stayed?" Diana said.

Artemis and Aresia both looked shocked. "Stay?" Aresia finally asked. "But - away from the Amazons!"

"You _might_ not even be an Amazon in the present," Diana pointed out. "Your ship was sunk by  
Savage's military, after all. You might be a normal person." She doubted this, since Aresia had lost her parents in her universe without any help from Savage, but she wanted to suggest to Aresia that somewhere, there was a little girl who wouldn't lose her family. "This might be your only chance to remain an Amazon."

"She's right," Aresia murmured. "But what would I do?"

"This world needs an Amazon," Diana replied. "Why not continue to do the things we did today?"

"It's easy for you to say these things," Artemis said. "You're more experienced, and you have the  
armor."

"I wasn't experienced in the world of Man when I left MY Themiscyra," Diana said. "And as for the  
armor, I would give it to Aresia with gladness in my heart. We've seen what would have happened to the world if it hadn't been for us. And what affects the world eventually affects Themiscyra. Aresia would be keeping the peace in both worlds, Artemis. And don't forget, it's not like she's depriving Themiscyra of the armors. After all, in THIS world, the world whose future we're going to return to, the armor is still in the temple."

"Now I'm confused," Aresia said.

"For once, so am I," Artemis muttered.

Diana slowly removed the bracelets. "If you never forget what Hippolyta taught you, Aresia," she  
said, handing them over, "I think you'll make a fine - Wonder Woman."

Aresia held them gingerly, as if they might turn into rust in her hands. "You think so?"

Diana took off her tiara and set it on Aresia's brow. It surprised her to say it, but . . . "I know  
so."

Then there was darkness.

* * *

Diana wasn't even surprised when she opened her eyes and discovered she wasn't in a British tavern, or even standing. She sighed, but she did feel like she had important information she hadn't had before. All three times, she'd found herself in a new world only after some crisis had seemed averted in the old one.

It felt like a curse to her, but maybe there were three other Dianas, three other worlds maybe, that  
were the happier for it.

She exhaled wearily as she sat up. Perhaps if she helped enough people bouncing from one dimension to another like a tennis ball, it would fill the hole in her heart left by Audrey's absence.

Glancing around, Diana saw she was in her room on the Watchtower, but the layout and the furnishings were enough to tell her that it wasn't HER Watchtower. She glanced out her window, and saw something that meant she was _definitely_ in another world.

There was another space station out in space, orbiting alongside this one.

She hoped this didn't mean she was a Justice Lord again, and Diana instinctively looked at herself. She was relieved to see she looked the same as she had in her homeworld.

Rather than going to the control room and perhaps saying something foolish, Diana decided to access the Watchtower's archives through the computer in her room. That would tell her everything she needed to know about this dimension.

Three minutes later, she frowned at the monitor. It wasn't recognizing her password, and she'd tried every one she'd ever used. Unfortunately it didn't seem to be related to Audrey, and she resigned herself to yet another world where they weren't together.

"Wonder Woman?"

"Yes?" Diana asked, the call coming over her communicator. "Who's this?"

"It's Huntress, Wonder Woman. Are you having a problem with your computer?"

Huntress. A minor hero from Gotham, she believed. Batman had mentioned her once or twice.  
"Yes, it's not recognizing my password," Diana told her. Perhaps the League had a different membership in this universe.

"Hm, Booster had the same problem yesterday. Hold on, I'll be right there."

Diana sat back. Booster?

A minute later, there was a knock on the door. Diana opened it and found an attractive young woman with dark hair, wearing a costume that exposed her midriff and reminded her vaguely of Star Sapphire's. "I have the master password from J'onn," Huntress said. "Let me see."

Diana moved aside for her to sit at the computer. "It's amazing, isn't it?" she asked.

"What?"

"More than one Watchtower orbiting the Earth, and we still have computer problems."

Huntress chuckled. "Hey, three space stations orbiting in synchronicity with each other? There's  
bound to be a glitch or two. Okay, I'm in. It says here your password is . . . um, did you really put  
this in? Because I think Flash was playing a practical joke on Booster, and he might have done the same to you."

"What does it say?" Diana asked, feeling an unaccountable dread.

"The password is 'b-r-u-c-e-w'."

Diana blinked. Brucew? "No, I don't think that's mine," she said slowly.

"Yeah, that Flash thinks he's a riot. I mean, why would you use Bruce Wayne for your password? I've seen the guy in the papers in Gotham. He's the kind of man an Amazon wouldn't give the time of day to. Nice enough, but treats women like Kleenex."

Diana only half paid attention to the last words. She was staring at a photograph on a shelf over the computer. It was a picture of her and Batman. And not a news photo either.

She put a hand over her face. "Oh, Hera," she mumbled.

To be continued with "Hawk and Love"!


	10. Hawk and Love, Chapter One

Amazon Stories - Hawk and Love

(See previous chapters for disclaimers.)

* * *

Chapter One

There were no Justice Lords in this universe (if you didn't count the ones locked in the Watchtower, just like in her world).

Vandal Savage didn't rule the world.

Aresia wasn't impersonating Diana and using her cover to create her "male plague".

In fact, there didn't appear to be any crisis confronting the world at this time.

For that reason, Diana removed her armor and climbed into bed. After an hour of reading her most recent personal log entries, she needed to decompress very badly.

Five minutes later, Diana lay on her back and stared at the ceiling. Words on a computer screen flashed through her mind.

As far as she could see, this world had been like her home in every important way - until Vandal Savage's failed attempt to use the international space station as a weapon led to his taking Diana prisoner.

Here she was not released by Princess Audrey, but by Batman. This in itself was not shocking. He had been ready to make his move when Audrey had beaten him to it.

Then, however, after Savage had been led away from the ruins of the Kasnian palace, Diana had not left with Audrey. Instead she had left with Batman.

To go dancing.

From there, it appeared the world had continued to go on much as it had in her home dimension, but for her relationship with both Audrey and Bruce.

Audrey and Diana were friends, but only friends who exchange an occasional phone call. Evidently Audrey's failure to believe Diana in THIS world had created a breach of trust too wide for either woman to bridge.

Today Audrey was Queen of Kasnia, her father having finally succumbed to the long-term effects of his poisoning. Diana had never bothered to track down the antidote. Nor had she offered Audrey any guidance in how to rule. Evidently she'd felt quite strongly that it was not a Justice League member's place to meddle in foreign affairs. Audrey had tried her best, but currently Kasnia was in a state of civil war, with terrorist armies in the north and south fighting for control. Little beyond the capital was safe.

And though Wonder Woman had intervened in a crisis in Kasnia months earlier, it appeared that even now she failed to acknowledge that she bore some of the blame for the current state of events. Champion of truth? More like champion of denial.

Although, truth be told, this Diana had been distracted . . . by a growing attraction to Batman.

Diana put her hands over her face. Her and _Bruce?_ Batman was a very handsome man with a keen intellect, impressive fighting skills, incredible bravery, and a highly developed sense of honor and principles. He was one of the finest specimens Man had to offer. But she'd never thought of him as more than a friend.

This Diana, it seemed, was different. His actions during the Savage situation had lit a spark that only grew with time until . . .

She took her hands away from her face. She had bigger things to worry about than her double's infatuation with Bruce. Whether she had a future with Batman or not was up to her twin.

The real issue was Shayera.

As appalled as Diana had been to read her own personal entries where she had written entirely inappropriate thoughts about the Dark Knight, it was dwarfed by her horror as she read about the Thanagarian invasion. It turned out that Hawkgirl had NOT been accidentally cast across time and been trapped on Earth. She had been a SPY sent to study Earth and gain the trust of its people. Then, when the Thanagarian fleet had arrived with a cover story about a warlike alien race with designs on Earth, Hawkgirl had supplied her people with the League's weaknesses and the codes to the Watchtower.

It took the destruction of the Watchtower and the near-sacrifice of Batman (which, to her dismay, had apparently only increased Diana's ardor for him) to prevent the Thanagarians from accomplishing their true goal - destroying the planet so they could launch a surprise attack on their enemies.

That wasn't entirely true. Hawkgirl had eventually warned the League about her people's plan and returned John's ring to him. But her betrayal created huge shockwaves within the League. Shayera had resigned and left, her relationship with John over. The people of Earth called her traitor now, not hero.

And Wonder Woman had evidently not been sorry to see her go. In her own world, Diana had gravitated to Shayera as the only other woman in the League, and their similar relationship problems with Audrey and John had helped bring them closer together. Here, of course, there was no such common ground, and their relationship remained as much rivalry as it was a friendship. When Shayera betrayed the League, Wonder Woman had very nearly left her to die in a Thanagarian ship. Later she had been the loudest voice calling for her dismissal.

It seemed Diana was too wrapped up in Bruce to have room for compassion.

At any rate, Diana had learned why the Huntress was here. The League, after rebuilding the Watchtower, had vastly expanded its ranks to include dozens of heroes, all of whom had reportedly performed quite well in the field. Diana actually thought this  
might be something to look into if she ever returned home. The world was doing just fine.

Except for Kasnia. And Diana, who had written that she was trying to elicit a reaction from Batman by flirting more brazenly than before - a bizarre incident, where Batman helped her after Circe had turned her into a PIG, had unfortunately added fuel to her fire. And Shayera.

Truth be told, Diana didn't know if the Hawkgirl in her world was a spy as well. Considering their friendship, she would probably be even angrier if it was true.

However, Shayera had helped the League, and without her help, Earth would have died. She had committed an even more rank betrayal, that of her own people, in order to protect Earth as she had always done. Cut off by both the Thanagarians and the League, what did Shayera have left?

Diana sat up. If she did nothing else while she was trapped in this body, she would put aside her host's silly schoolgirl crush on Batman and focus on Hawkgirl. Shayera needed to be forgiven.

Returning to the computer, Diana learned that Hawkgirl had reappeared quite recently after a long absence. According to the League files, Solomon Grundy had been resurrected once more, this time going on a mindless rampage through San Francisco. Hawkgirl had arrived with Aquaman, Doctor Fate, and - Professor Ivo's android? And it was only because of Hawkgirl's special mace that . . . Diana made a sympathetic noise. Shayera had grieved for Grundy after his death, and now she'd been forced to kill him all over again. A mercy killing, yes, but that couldn't have assuaged her pain much.

Superman had noted that Shayera had probably been staying with Fate all along, much as the android had taken refuge with the wizard. She really should go to Fate's tower and -

Her jaw dropped. Oh Athena, why had your wisdom eluded her until now? She smacked her forehead.

What better way to undo a curse than to consult with another magician?

* * *

Wonder Woman paced in front of the tall structure in the clearing, a tower that seemed to be made of solid stone. "Fate!" she called out. "I need to speak to you! It's urgent!"

A door finally opened where no door had been before, and a familiar figure stepped out. "You could have just contacted me from the Watchtower," he said pleasantly. "I am a reserve member, you know."

She hadn't known. She hadn't noticed his name in the list of new members. But then, she could be honest with him. "I'm not exactly up to date yet," she replied.

"Oh?"

"You see, I'm not from this world."

He didn't move, and yet a few seconds later he nodded. "I see. Please, come in."

Diana followed him inside and found herself in a well-furnished study. She wondered if she was somewhere inside the tower, or if this were someplace else entirely. Who could say? "You see?"

"There is a great deal of magic about you," he said.

"Well, I am wearing the armor forged - "

"I am familiar with that, but your aura is quite different from the last time I saw you. I can't quite make it out, however. Magic has always been a part of you, I suspect even before you ever wore the armor. You say you are not from this world?"

"This - body is," Diana told him. "My mind is from another dimension, however. The sorceress Circe cast me from my home dimension, and I found myself trapped in the body of another Diana."

"Interesting. Circe is more powerful than I thought. How long ago did this happen?"

"I can't exactly say. This is actually the fourth world I've 'visited' since this began."

He looked at her piercingly. "And what caused you to leave those other worlds?"

"I can't be sure, but it always happens after I've resolved some form of crisis. Defeating the Justice Lords, fixing the timeline, that sort of thing."

"Odd. Why would Circe's black magic send you on a journey that rewards you for doing good works?" He tapped the chin of his helmet. "If you could, perhaps you could remain here for a few hours. I would like to study this magic I'm detecting further."

"Of course. Shall I remove the armor?"

"Please. It would make things easier."

She removed the tiara. "I came for another reason. Is - Shayera staying here?"

"She is. You must have deduced this from the incident with Solomon Grundy."

"Yes. Can I speak with her?"

"If she wishes it. Come with me."

Diana removed her lariat and the rest of her armor and set it next to her tiara. Fortunately she'd dressed appropriately underneath.

She found herself entering a glowing ankh he summoned, and stepping outside. Except they were no longer by the tower. There were gardens here, and mountains in the distance, and a clear sky.

Kneeling with her back to them was a familiar form with a pair of magnificent wings sprouting from her back.

"You will not see me, but I am here," Fate said quietly. "Feel free to talk about whatever you wish, I will not be listening."

Shayera turned as Diana nodded at Fate. He vanished. The hawkwoman's eyes widened, and then she looked away.

"Shayera," Diana said.

"Wonder Woman," Hawkgirl replied.

"Why not call me Diana?"

Hawkgirl looked even more surprised. "Why even talk to me? We both know how you feel about me. You - despise me," she said dully.

Diana stepped around Shayera and kneeled across from her. She decided not to tell Shayera just yet about who she really was. "I heard about Grundy," she said. "I'm sorry."

Shayera nodded. "Thanks. He needed it. It wasn't him, just his body. I know it sounds crazy, but I tried to give him his - dignity back."

"Grundy helped save us all from a dark god, Shayera. He deserved to rest in peace. You helped him that night."

"Why are you calling me that?"

"What, Shayera?"

The Thanagarian nodded. "It's not like we were ever on a true first-name basis. We fought more than I would have liked."

"I suspected you wouldn't be comfortable with the Hawkgirl moniker. Bad memories."

"Plenty of those," Shayera agreed. "Seeing you - I'm reminded of the way you looked at me when I was in that Thanagarian cell. Your eyes, they told me in no uncertain terms that when you freed me, it wasn't out of any affection for me."

"Seeing you now," Diana replied, "I'm reminded of a hundred ways in which you saved others. Watched my back, even."

Shayera didn't look gratified by the remark. "And all the while, I was lying to you."

"Yes," Diana acknowledged. There wasn't much you could say to that. "Now what are you going to do about it?"

"Oh, please. You're going to try to get my dander up? It's been tried before, Diana."

"Actually, it's a pretty simple question. What are you going to do about it? Stay here forever? It's quite nice, actually, but it's not you."

"How would you know? I don't even know what's me any more."

"Well, sitting around here isn't going to help any."

"What then? Put on the old costume, do the good deeds, be spat on by the people I save?"

"Careful, Shayera," Diana said dryly. "I'm starting to see your dander."

Shayera stopped. "I guess I'd forgotten what it's like dealing with you."

"I would have thought you'd be more irritable, considering . . ."

"Considering what?"

"Life without John."

"Oh." She looked down. "Why did he grow that beard?"

"We all had a life-altering experience during the invasion, Shayera. I think he's allowed to make a radical change or two."

"I suppose. He - still cares for me, I think," Shayera said. "He never said so, but unlike John, who seemed to take forever before he realized I was interested in him, I can read someone's body language relatively well."

"Good," Diana replied.

"Good?"

"Maybe that will help you realize that shutting yourself away like this isn't helping anyone. It's not helping him, and it's certainly not helping you. You think people will spit at you? Well, maybe they will. But I wonder if part of you wants them to. You seem to be big on self-flagellation lately."

"Gee, _there's_ the sharp tongue I missed," Shayera muttered.

"Neither of us were really here when Superman was brainwashed by Darkseid," Diana pointed out. "A lot of people wrote him off after that. He lost their trust. Now he has it again. And he didn't need to spend six months inside the Fortress of Solitude first."

Shayera slowly nodded. "He did say he believed in second chances," she said. Then she looked up. "He also said he was the deciding vote when the League decided on my membership. Two people voted for my dismissal. I assume you were one of them."

"I was," Diana said. It had been in the log. Batman had been the other one. Yet another  
opportunity for Diana to see how they were in agreement on so much. Diana thought it sounded like she was trying to convince herself a little too much.

"So why are you here now?"

Diana paused. She didn't want to lie and promise Shayera that all was forgiven. There was no telling how her double would treat Shayera when Diana had moved on once again. "Believe me, Shayera, when I tell you that I want us to be on the same team again someday," she finally said. "Prove to me that I was wrong to write you off too."

Before Shayera could answer, Fate reappeared. "I'm sorry, Shayera, but Inza wanted to know if you could help her with dinner."

"Of course," Shayera said. She got up, then looked at Diana. "Maybe we'll see each other again," she added.

"Let's hope so," Diana replied.

"I'll be right along," Fate told Shayera before she departed. When it was just the two, he turned to Diana. "Interesting that you refrained from telling her about your secret."

"What good would it have done?" Diana asked. "She would have assumed that the real Diana would go on hating her once I was gone."

"Which could be exactly what happens."

"True, but if Shayera goes out there and shows her true colors once more, that will be my double's mistake, not Shayera's."

"You could be right," he mused. "I have information on your predicament, by the way."

She smiled. "Can you fix it?"

"Perhaps. Let's talk further."

To be continued . . .


	11. Hawk and Love, Chapter Two

Amazon Stories - Hawk and Love

Chapter Two

"What have you found?" Diana asked as she slid her armor back on.

"Diana, have you been touched recently by divine magic?" he replied as he sat down.

"I can't speak for the body I'm in . . ."

"No, I mean you personally. In any of the worlds you visited, were you touched by divine magic?"

She shook her head, confused. "I know the gods had a hand in my birth. Perhaps - "

"No, this is recent. Diana, you claimed Circe used some form of dark magic on you, but I can't detect any traces of black magic. It's possible they're deeply hidden, but the kind of magic you've described - your spirit being ripped from an entire dimension, then being placed in another body whose spirit is then silenced - requires immense amounts of power, and there SHOULD be traces of it."

"So what are you saying?"

"I'm saying that the most likely answer is that your 'leaping' has divine origins."

Diana thought back. "Circe did THROW something at me that day."

"It may very well have been something created by a god. Perhaps even one of your own."

"Ares," Diana guessed. "Hades."

"Perhaps. I've thought more about your problem. Every time, you have been placed in a situation of grave danger - Savage threatening the Watchtower, Aresia stealing your powers. It may be that the spell is intentionally putting you in harm's way, then moving you to a new crisis when you manage to thwart the first one."

Diana's heart sank. "So this is an unending cycle of death traps until I finally lose?"

"I can't say. Although you could also view this spell as having backfired on its caster."

"Circe's not the one stuck in this loop," Diana grumbled.

"No, but she hates you more than anyone else, other than your mother. If she knew that her actionshad, so far, saved three other Wonder Women from their own folly, wouldn't she be upset?"

"I imagine she would," Diana admitted wryly. Then she paused. "Folly?"

"I didn't mean to offend - "

"No, no, it's just - you're not wrong. Every Diana whose body I've shared was endangered by her own folly or naïveté. The Justice Lord's corruption, the Amazon's lack of knowledge of the outside world, another's infatuation with the wrong woman blinding her to the truth . . ." She shook her head. "I could say the same about the woman I'm inside of now. Her heart has caused her to unwittingly hurt others."

Fate nodded. "You have always struck me as a proud woman, Diana. It must be a little embarrassing for you, seeing the mistakes your doubles have made."

"I have made mistakes too," Diana acknowledged grudgingly, "but I was at least able to fix them before it was too late."

"Evidently not as embarrassing as admitting to them in the first place," he chuckled.

"So you can't do anything?" she asked helplessly.

"Not without endangering both you and the body you're inhabiting," he said. "Practicing magic without all the facts is both tricky and potentially harmful. You may wish to try praying to one of your patron goddesses for help. Otherwise, you could - accept your situation and make the best of it. You left those last three worlds better than you found them, you've said. You've also said that your role in the Justice League forced you to sacrifice time with your loved ones in your home dimension. Isn't this a somewhat similar situation?"

Diana sighed. "Maybe a little," she said. "But how long am I supposed to go on living vicariously through my doubles? When do I get what _I_ want? I know it sounds selfish, but - "

"But sometimes the sacrifices you make seem too great," he finished for her.

"Exactly," she muttered.

"Welcome to our world."

* * *

"Mind if I ask you a question?"

Batman didn't turn around. "Are you going to lasso me if I say no?"

"If I thought it would improve your personality, I would," Diana said as she floated behind him.

This time he looked at her. "What's your question?"

"Why Huntress? Why not Nightwing? I know you've had issues in the past with her methods. So why not invite your old protégé instead?" Diana had found Huntress nothing but helpful earlier, but she'd still been surprised when a review of the expanded roster didn't turn up Nightwing's name.

"Nightwing wants to be seen as his own man," Batman said, returning to his binoculars. "It's probably better we're not in the League together. Besides, Bludhaven is a better use of his time than the League. The city needs him more than the JL does."

"I see," she said. "Another question?"

His sigh was almost imperceptible. "What?"

"Is there any chance whatsoever that you and I are going to become a couple?" she asked bluntly.

This time Batman favored her by turning his entire body, not just his head. "Excuse me?" he said.

"You heard me. You're the detective. You must have noticed how I feel about you. You're also someone who isn't known for having a lot of relationships. And you're awfully hard to pin down. So give it up. Do you have feelings for me?"

"I don't have time for this," he said.

She took a step closer. "Look," she said, growing impatient. "It's not a difficult question.Are you interested or not?"

"Do you really want an honest answer?"

"Truth _is_ a word generally associated with me, yes."

"Then no. I'm not interested."

"You're sure?" she asked calmly. "You're not saying this because you don't think you can make a girl happy, or because you're afraid of a relationship, or - "

He raised a hand, and she stopped. "I like you," he finally admitted. "And I respect you very much - although you do have a tendency to lose your temper during a battle."

"Is that really relevant?"

"Perhaps not, but you might as well hear it all. Our work in the League has brought us - closer lately. The Thanagarian invasion, Circe's spell, the Kasnian problem - I think we work together well, especially when you're able to rein yourself in. And I . . . went to some extremes to save you from Circe's curse. But I didn't do it out of some attraction for you. I did it because we're a team, however I may feel about my involvement with the League. I would have done the same for the others. You are - " He paused. "A friend. But there's nothing more."

"Is there another?" She surprised him by smiling. "Someone in purple, perhaps?"

"I thought you'd be more upset," he said. "You'd been less subtle lately. I would have spoken earlier, but - "

"My temper?"

"I assumed you'd grow out of it, actually."

"You should have said something. I feel - free, now."

"Good," he grumbled, returning to his stakeout. "And it's black now."

"What?"

"She's wearing black now. You wouldn't have known."

"Huh," she said as she flew off. Black. What was Catwoman thinking?

* * *

Diana rubbed her palms and realized they were sweaty. She was nervous, and this wasn't even her life. She was just waiting for the latest brush with death to come along so she could be sent careening to the next world.

But this one was a little different for her. This wasn't a Diana who never knew Audrey. This was one who knew her - and then let her slip through her fingers. And she had a lot more in common with THIS world's Diana than she did with the Diana who had been in love with Aresia.

Never mind the fact at how different the situation was. She'd arrived in Kasnia during the day, which meant she'd waited several hours, watching Audrey's routine from the shadows. She had learned from her double's logs that Kasnia was torn by civil war and guerilla armies from two different regions, but seeing it - the reality had been painful. In loving Audrey, she'd come to care about Kasnia's well-being almost as much as she did for Themiscyra. Kasnia was important to Audrey. Therefore it was important to her.

And now Audrey didn't leave the capital. Once she'd abandoned her bodyguards with regularity when she was a party hound. Now she stayed well within her protection when she left the manor house she'd adopted as the new palace. The only thing keeping the government from being wiped out was the fact that the northern and southern armies were more interested in destroying each other.

This was her fault, and Diana grieved.

Now it was night, and Audrey had retired to her room. An uneasy sleep, certainly. Probably a lonely one as well.

Diana had no right to ease her loneliness. But maybe she could do try and do something about the burden of the crown she wore.

Flying through the balcony doors was out of the question. In her world it was her typical form of entry, but now they were monitored. Too easy for an assassin to slip in and further destabilize the country. Diana was forced to use her speed and flying to bypass the security and reach Audrey's room.

Where Audrey was not in fact sleeping, she discovered too late. She was at her desk, working. And she was quite surprised to see her. "Wonder Woman?" she asked, astonished. "What are you doing here?"

Wonder Woman. Diana couldn't remember the last time Audrey had called her that. "I - I came to see you," she said lamely. "I didn't want anyone to know."

"Oh," Audrey said, looking at a loss. "Well, I shouldn't be surprised. You came and left so suddenly last year, I never even got to thank you for the Justice League's help."

"You're welcome," Diana said. "I'm sorry about that. Sorry - for a lot of things, I think." Sorry for how exhausted Audrey looked.

Audrey shrugged. "I am sorry too. Events here have cost me other friendships besides yours."

"No, that was my fault," Diana told her.

"Perhaps," Audrey said. "Why are you here, Diana?"

Diana sat down. "This is all my fault, Audrey. If I hadn't - "

"Diana, no - the resentments in my country had been simmering for years. You remember what I told you. Lots of people in Kasnia don't like Kasnia. What could you have done?"

"Helped you when you asked for it," Diana said miserably. "Instead of pushing you away." The logs said that Diana had rejected Audrey's request for guidance and advice three times before the queen finally gave up. "This place could be better if I had said yes."

"We can't know that," Audrey said wearily.

"I know it," Diana replied, her eyes bitter. "To wash away my guilt, Audrey, I would seek out everythreat to your government and sweep them away. I would do it if you asked me."

Audrey blinked. "You're not serious."

Diana said nothing."I - appreciate the offer, but you realize I could never accept." Audrey chuckled mirthlessly. "Perhaps that is even why you offer it. You know a member of the Justice League cannot intervene so blatantly in a country's internal affairs, not when one side isn't clearly in the right. My father's government did bad things to the people. Some are legitimately angry. Others, well - " She waved a hand. "They think a man would make a better ruler. Honestly, though, did you really think I'd agree to your absurd suggestion?"

"Audrey, I . . ." Diana looked away. She could have told Audrey that she wasn't from this dimension, that in another world she'd made different choices, which led to the saving of Gustav's life, the preservation of peace in Kasnia, and a love Audrey would cherish. And what would be the result? What good would it do, except torment Audrey with a vision of a better world, make her resent Diana even more?

"I wish I could just make it better," she whispered. "Things could have been better."

"Yes," Audrey agreed. "They could." She sighed. "I am sorry, Diana, for my rudeness. I thought I could lead Kasnia out of the Savage mess, but I couldn't. If anyone is to blame, it is I. If I knew how you could make it better, I would tell you."

Diana stood up again. "I shouldn't have come," she said. "I've only - "

"No," Audrey said. "It's good you did. At least I know you do care. I didn't believe you when I married Savage. I thought that was why you turned me away, that you no longer trusted me."

The heroine shook her head, remembering that in this world, it was Batman and not Audrey who liberated her from Savage. "I failed you more." She turned to go.

"Diana?"

"Yes?" she asked.

"Perhaps - we could talk again?" Audrey said. "I have no one, you see."

"I would promise you that, at least," Diana replied.

"Thank you," Audrey sighed.

Diana left Audrey's home crying, grateful this wasn't her world, and now praying the spell would send her away swiftly.

To be continued . . .


	12. Hawk and Love, Chapter Three

Amazon Stories - Hawk and Love

Chapter Three

This was it, Diana realized. No death trap. No cataclysm. This world was the success Circe's curse had been searching for. If it couldn't find a dimension that would kill her, it would send her to a world where she wished she was dead. A world where she could never be with Audrey, where she could only watch as Audrey's homeland slipped into war and chaos - and its architect? Wonder Woman, Princess of Peace.

"Sometimes," she thought dully as she sat in her room at the Watchtower, "the mistakes I make are too big for even me to fix." The fact that it was her double at fault and not herself didn't make it better.

She'd taken some solace in Fate's reminder that her journey had given her the chance to help three other versions of herself, make those worlds better. Now, however, she was faced with the enormity of her situation. What if this was NOT in fact her last stop? What if she continued to bounce across the fabric of time and space? How many more people would she be unable to save? How long before that burden killed her?

If defeat didn't destroy her, loneliness would.

Finally Diana stood up again and left her room. No crisis to respond to, no love to return to, no moment of darkness followed by an unfamiliar setting - she didn't know what to do. She could add being bored to a host of other regrets and hurts.

She passed other heroes in the hallways, some familiar, some not. When she encountered Green Lantern, he was the first member of the original League she'd seen so far. "Hello, John," she said.

"Diana," he replied. "You don't look so good."

"Call it exhaustion," she sighed. "I talked to Shayera yesterday."

John stiffened. "Did you," he said. "Felt you had to remind her she was no longer a member?"

"Excuse me?"

"Don't act like you forget, Diana," he said. "The other day you were talking about how the Solomon Grundy incident didn't change a goddamn thing, because she was still a spy all the other times she did the good deed. So what, you had to read her the riot act? You didn't have the votes the first time to throw her out, but you can't let go of a grudge, so you're making sure she feels not welcome. Right?"

Diana stared at him. "Actually, I've been - rethinking my opposition," she said after a moment.

Green Lantern looked at her strangely. "You're not being serious."

"No, I am," she said. "I went to see Fate on an unrelated matter, but while I was there . . . I said I wanted her to prove my vote wrong. I'm hoping she rises to the challenge."

"Why the sudden change? Not long ago you were even talking up Vixen, like she was the best woman I was ever going to meet." He raised an eyebrow. "When you did that, I figured you were never going to consider forgiving Hawkgirl."

"People make big mistakes," Diana said. "And sometimes they can punish themselves a lot better than anyone else can. Besides, _I_ have no right to judge other people's relationships."

"Since when?" he asked sarcastically. Then he paused. "He turned you down, didn't he?" he asked calmly.

She grimaced. Of course others had noticed. How embarrassing. "Nothing is going to happen between us," she said. "Was I that obvious?"

"Not to the newbies," John assured her.

"Thank Hera for small favors," she muttered.

"Are you going to be all right?" he asked.

She would grieve for Audrey longer than her double would grieve for Bruce. "Eventually, I hope."

He looked skeptical. "So . . . you think she might come back?" he finally asked.

"Shayera? I hope so."

"Me too," John replied softly.

She nodded. Then at least something good would come of this extended nightmare in this dimension. Diana missed her home dimension so, where Audrey cancelling a day together was nothing compared to the horrors she'd lived through.

Then everything went dark.

* * *

Diana opened her eyes and found herself in someplace new but familiar. She'd been transported from the Watchtower, and deposited in the temple on Themiscyra. She sighed. Maybe if she had time enough, she could seek her mother's counsel. Or at least a shoulder to cry on.

"The great princess of Themiscyra crying? What has happened to the world?"

She started and turned around. No one was there, and yet someone had spoke. She wiped at her eyes, not realizing she'd been crying, and found her cheeks dry.

"Ah, but you were thinking of it."

"Who are you, mindreader?" Diana demanded. "This is MY island. Show yourself!"

"Technically, it's Hippolyta's island, not yours. And if you want to get really technical . . ."

Two women appeared before Diana in ceremonial Amazonian attire. "It belongs to us," one of the women finished. Both were beautiful, but the one who spoke was almost impossibly beautiful. The other's hair was hidden by a Greek helmet.

Diana gasped and fell to her knees. "I crave pardon," she whispered. "I should not have spoken to you so."

"Rise, Diana," the helmeted woman said. She tapped her on the shoulder with the shaft of the spear she carried. "We must talk."

Slowly Diana stood. She'd never had a personal visitation from a goddess before, much less two! What world was she in now? "Athena. Aphrodite. How may I serve the gods?" she asked.

"You already have," Aphrodite said.

"What?" Once again, she wished she had her double's memories. "I don't understand."

"Evidently not. You are not in someone else's body. You are in your own."

Diana was astonished. "This is MY body?" Then she stopped. "Fate said I was touched by divine magic. It was you? YOU cast the spell?!"

"We both did," Athena said quickly. "We made sure the artifact we crafted fell into the witch's hands, and she acted as we knew she would. So if you wish to blame us, now would be the time."

"But - but why? Why would you help Circe like that?!"

"Help Circe?" Athena snorted. "Hardly. We were trying to help you."

They were patron goddesses of Themiscyra, but Diana was angry anyway. "By making me suffer?!"

"No, child," Athena said. "By making you see. See how you have been favored, and humbled."

She pointed past Diana with her spear and made a circular motion. Diana looked and saw an image appear in midair. In it she saw a familiar face, that of the Justice Lord Diana.

"In each world you visited," Aphrodite explained, "while you inhabited their bodies, their spirits were here, with us. They could see everything you did, but they couldn't share your memories. They were as surprised by the things you did as everyone else in those worlds were. Then, once you were finished in each world, they were sent back, and you - moved on."

"Finished? What was I there to do?"

"You were supposed to see how some of your other selves lived their lives. We hoped it would make you appreciate what you have a little more. Of course, we had a feeling you would feel compelled to make some 'changes'. You performed quite well, Princess Diana,"

Athena said.

"Did I make a difference though?" Diana asked, reaching up to touch the image. "I never knew what happened next. Did she - "

"Well, if it wasn't for you," Aphrodite said, "the Justice Lords would have destroyed the space station, killed Audrey, and governed Earth brutally for years to come. And an Amazon took part in it."

She shook her head.

"That particular Diana had some stern words from us," Athena said, frowning. "Even before us, she defended her actions at first."

"Not even an Amazon like you could hold out for long against us, however," Aphrodite added. "By the time you were finished, she despaired her actions and begged forgiveness."

"Your scheme was well-played," Athena continued.

"I suspect that no matter what we did, your double would have been compelled to help the population fight the remaining Justice Lords. After 'her' betrayal, her only hope of survival was to fight back. Of course, she now lives with the need to pay for what she did. The battle continues - one Lord against five isn't very good odds - but the firepower of the remaining armies, plus human ingenuity and a number of superheroes and villains, are slowly beating the Lords."

"Five?" Diana asked.

"Superman disappeared after he got between the meteor and the Watchtower," Athena said. "He was presumed dead."

"What about Audrey?"

"She doesn't love her - yet. But she has sworn to protect your human, and Audrey is trying very hard to build on that."

"She can be very seductive," Diana murmured.

"Can't she?" Aphrodite agreed, pleased.

"Ahem," Athena muttered. "And so . . ." The image changed. "You had to deal with Aresia. If we hadn't sent you there, your double would have eventually located 'Fury' as you did. However, her infatuation continues to blind her, and she chooses to remain with Aresia as a sort of, what's the word, sidekick?"

Diana felt nauseous.

"Audrey returns to Themiscyra alone," Athena went on. "Meanwhile, Aresia begins her plans to wipe out the men of Earth. When Diana finds out, she allows her emotions to rule her judgment, helps Aresia, and Aresia succeeds. _Or_, Diana finally sees the truth, but Aresia kills her and succeeds anyway."

"Thanks to you, however, Aresia is returned to Themiscyra for punishment, and you remain in Man's World as Wonder Woman. Audrey never returns to the throne in Kasnia, and she eventually becomes a minor heroine in her own right," Aphrodite added.

"I don't know how I feel about _that_," Diana said. "She shouldn't be putting herself in danger like that."

"Which is why Wonder Woman always seems to be by her side," Aphrodite replied.

Diana blinked. "She's my - sidekick?"

Athena chuckled. "Moving on . . . Vandal Savage again. If the three of you hadn't gone to Gotham - "

"Let me guess," Diana said. "They all would have died."

The goddess of wisdom nodded. "And the following year, Savage locates Themiscyra and grinds it under his heel. Nothing you could have done would have mattered."

"So I was a, dare I say it, dea ex machina?"

"The ancient playwrights would have said the same thing," Aphrodite said.

"Except you did more than simply undo Savage's creation," Athena said, intrigued. "You capitalized on the opportunity provided by it when you gave Aresia your armor."

"It actually worked?" Diana asked, surprised.

Athena nodded. "Aresia became the first Wonder Woman, and helped end the war. She married the American Steve Trevor and went on fighting for peace until she became too old. And something else happened that even we didn't expect - Aresia's daughter chose to live a normal life, but her _granddaughter_, Donna Troy, was determined to use the armor as Aresia had. Aresia showed Donna her heritage by bringing her to Themiscyra. While Aresia was telling her story to Amazons who no longer knew her, the White Martians invaded Earth, and it was both you and 'Wonder Girl' who helped the Justice League drive them away."

"Athena," Aphrodite chided her, "she doesn't care about all that. She just wants to know if Audrey survived."

"No, I'm glad to hear the rest," Diana said. "It made me happy to see Aresia being true to her Amazonian teachings. I'm glad she continued to do so in Man's World." She shrugged. "Although yes, a little confirmation on Audrey would be nice."

Aphrodite laughed delightedly. "You _are_ too serious, sister," she said to Athena.

"Just tell her," Athena grumbled.

"She'll be fine," Aphrodite assured her. "And you will find her, as you always seem to."

Diana nodded. "This is all good, but . . . what good did I accomplish in the last world? Is that why you brought me here when you did? Because I finally failed you?" she asked, upset.

"No," Aphrodite said, stepping forward and putting a hand on Diana's cheek that eased her worries. "You did everything you could. It just wasn't enough, you see."

"So that Diana, and Audrey?"

"They had their chance, but your double missed it." Aphrodite shook her head. "As you realized, even someone blessed by the gods as yourself can make mistakes. And sometimes you can make mistakes that you can never undo. Never forget that, child. No matter how much it may seem like you and Audrey can never be together the way you want, it could get a lot worse, and you may not be able to do anything about it."

Diana looked at them. "So I should appreciate what I have?"

"And fight for it," Athena said. "Do what we watched you do. Don't let anything take her from you."

"Fight for what you believe in, Diana," Aphrodite said. "You know what is right, and you make it so. That's why we waited before summoning you from that last world. Even after you knew there could be nothing between you and Audrey, you tried to help Hawkgirl. You forced Diana to let go of her anger, and you helped clear the way for her return to the Justice League."

"Shayera," Diana realized, suddenly worried. "I shouldn't ask this, but I have to know. The Shayera in my world - she's not a . . . spy, is she?"

Athena rolled her eyes. "What do you think?"

"My heart tells me no."

"Then what's the problem?"

Diana sighed. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, although by now you should have faith in your heart," Aphrodite said. "So, strive for the best, but never forget what you have, or who you are. Got it?"

She nodded. "I will," she said.

"Good. Now go finish that witch off." Athena turned and created a larger window with her spear, one big enough for Diana to walk through.

"Where is she?" Diana asked, her hands forming fists. This had all been part of something greater, but Circe had thrown that magical item with a heart full of malice, and she itched to pay her back.

"Where you left her. You've only been gone two minutes." Athena snorted. "She's still enjoying her 'triumph'. Why not enlighten her, much as you have been enlightened?"

Diana smiled. "Thank you so much."

"Such gratitude, considering how we made you suffer," Aphrodite murmured.

"The fire only makes you stronger," Diana said before entering the portal and finding herself being sucked forward at high speed. Her destination, she quickly saw, was a spot right in the small of Circe's back. She grinned as she pulled a fist back.

"Oh, Hera," she thought. "This is going to leave a mark."

The End.

Author's Note - yes, this story was partially inspired by the TV series Quantum Leap. Donna Troy, aka Troia from the Teen Titans, was not actually related to Steve Trevor or Aresia in canon. That was my idea.

I apologize for the lateness of these last few chapters. These were written some time ago, but for some reason I neglected to post them to FFN. The occasional reviews reminding me that I hadn't finished yet, they're the reason I got off my lazy ass. So thank you.


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